Supplement DB
by Maruno
Summary: The second saga, to follow Continuum T. Read the first saga first, to understand what's going on. The continuing story of one man's journey to the ultimate conclusion. PG for some violent scenes. Saga finally completed, 22.07.04.
1. A New Saga

Disclaimer: Anything in this saga you vaguely remember seeing elsewhere, I don't own, although the general plotline is, as far as I know, completely original. Basically, the same disclaimer applies from the previous saga, Continuum T. If you haven't read Continuum T, you probably should. Otherwise you'll never understand this one.

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Previously in this storyline:

            Tenchi Neo Masaki has fought and defeated Sel, twice, Kagato, Aki, K'oko, and his fear of evil. He had harnessed his Supreme Saiyan powers, that is, Super Saiyan 3. He also has the ability to evolve whenever he wants, to one of the three higher forms: _homo validus_, _homo supremus_ or _deus omnipotens_. He is now Multiversally known as God, ultimate being of reality and creator of everything to exist. He has six good friends, being five girls and a cabbit. He also shares a room with his dead clone. And he didn't think he would amount to anything.

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            Supplement DB, Part I – A New Saga

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            The sun rose, as it often did, over the Earth. The Earth as a whole is rather big. Well, nanoscopic compared to even a galaxy, but casting these images aside, you can see that the Earth is a rather large rock. All over it are signs of life, a city here, a section of missing rainforest there. However, the part worth mentioning is in Japan, in the Okayama province. Somewhere among the mountains was a lake. Nothing special in itself, but a house resided next to it. A large house, to accommodate five women, four men and Ryo-Ohki.

            Tenchi woke up early, a natural reaction to the alarm clock. He groped around and picked up a shoe to throw at it. He wondered as he threw, not for the first time, why he didn't have his clock next to his bed, instead of across the room. He picked up the other shoe and threw it at the person sleeping next to him.

            Aki stirred and murmured something. He didn't want to be woken up yet. He was having a really nice dream about fluffy white clouds. A little strange, maybe, but they were really fluffy.

            Another cloud appeared in front of him and enveloped him. He couldn't breathe. He started gasping for air and found it, spluttering the last remnants of his dream from his mind.

            He looked up at Tenchi, suspiciously holding his pillow above Aki.

            "Come on, Aki," Tenchi said. "Breakfast doesn't eat itself."

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            It had now been the better part of two months since Tenchi's return. During this time he had moved round, touring the galaxy, letting everyone know he was still alive, mainly those who hadn't heard his speech on Jurai, and freaking out those he went to school with. Tenchi had found it hilarious.

            Tenchi was now back in Okayama, Japan, Earth. He felt that he deserved a rest. Despite everyone knowing exactly who he was, and having several discreditable and unauthorised 'autobiographies' released, Tenchi still enjoyed the home life.

            In fact, he was working on a project.

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            "So what do you think so far?" Tenchi asked. "I know you don't know what happened, but this is it. Did you like the way it was presented?"

            Tenchi's video documentary of his life rewound in the cassette player. He had just finished filming his second fight with Sel, during which Tenchi became a Super Saiyan, and so what everyone had watched was the main events in Tenchi's life up to that point.

            "I think it's great!" Aki praised. "Those were some nice effects you put in there, with the camera filming in slow motion some times and all."

            "It's called Bullet Time™," Tenchi replied. "I did that to make it clearer, and to show how I experienced it."

            "That was incredible," Ayeka said.

            "Was it really exactly like that?" Mihoshi asked.

            "No. It wasn't like that at all. It was that," Tenchi said. "The stuff you just watched was really me back then. It wasn't some mock-up that looked like it. Being able to manipulate time sure has its advantages."

            "Yeah, and now everyone will know what really happened," Ryoko said. "I don't know about you, but I didn't like your book."

            "Ryoko, again, it's not my book," Tenchi said slowly. "Half of it isn't even about me. Almost none of the proper facts got in there, and quite frankly, it's all false. I don't actually know why I keep this around." He picked up the book he was talking about. On the front cover was one of about a dozen pictures the press had of Tenchi. It was probably the best one the writers of the book thought to go on the cover. And it wasn't even a particularly good picture, in Tenchi's opinion.

            "I didn't quite get how you managed to come back to life that first time," Washu said. "I know the Trinity brought you back the second time, but I don't get how you apparently willed yourself alive again that first time."

            "Fairly simple, really," Tenchi said. "I revived myself. That is, when I went back to film the fight, I used a bit of my power to bring my younger self back to life."

            "Isn't that cheating?" Aki asked.

            "Nope," Tenchi replied, smiling. "It already happened anyway, so it couldn't not happen. Besides, if anything was cheating, it was me now bringing out my earlier self's Saiyan and Super Saiyan powers in the fights you've seen. You know, just to make sure I'd use them, which I already have done."

            "Well, I thought it was scary," Sasami said. "That Sel monster was really bad."

            "Yeah, he was," Tenchi said. "Unbelievably fast, and very strong too. You saw the way he dodged those bullets I shot at him. I mean, yeah, Aki could beat him, but I actually doubt Ryoko or Ayeka could. He was nearly perfect."

            "But I thought he said he was completely perfect," Sasami said.

            "Well, I destroyed him. That usually proves that someone isn't perfect."

            "I guess. But aren't you worried that Sel will come back?"

            "Not at all," Tenchi replied. "I completely destroyed him. I know he's dead. True, he could replicate from a single cell, but I destroyed everything he was. He's not going to come back."

            And that was the ominous moment.

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            Soon later, Tenchi took the girls to Bespin, noted throughout the galaxy to be a spa planet. A person could just turn up there and be given expert treatment to make them completely relaxed. In the thousand years the commercial business of Bespin had been running, there had never been a single disappointed customer. Quite a reputation.

            Tenchi had asked his friends if they wanted a real vacation, and they all agreed. Even Nobuyuki and Yosho thought it was a good idea, and asked to come along. So the four men, five women and a cabbit appeared on the landing platform for the spaceships, with the help of instant translocation.

            Instantly the view was amazing. Despite some of the larger metallic ships spoiling the view slightly, it was still an incredible place, the organic type ships seeming to blend in with the scenery. The platform itself wasn't artificial, as were nearly all others across the galaxy, but instead was itself organic. It had been grown over the centuries very specifically to the standard docking bay layout. The surrounding buildings were also natural, but very well formed. The format of the place was designed to make visitors feel relaxed and calm from the very start, by providing nothing but pleasant images wherever they happened to be. A lot of effort had been put into making people feel at home.

            Of course, the Masaki home looked very little like this, aside from an odd plant that was similar to one at home. Still, it was very nice there.

            The group walked towards the nearest building, which happened to be the main reception. It was fairly big, with a fountain in the middle. Calming tuneless music drifted quietly through the air, accompanied by the sound of water splashing on pink and green rocks. Decorative drapes hung from the ceiling. The sun shone brightly through the open roof. Large arches led from the reception room to the rest of the facility. A large desk was round the other side of the fountain, with a single woman behind it, despite there being five points along it where receptionists would sit. Obviously it wasn't a busy time.

            While the others looked around, Tenchi approached the desk. The woman was busy leaning back, arms folded behind her head, and daydreaming. There was a signal that went off whenever a ship landed, but of course instant translocation wouldn't trigger that.

            Tenchi cleared his throat. The woman didn't hear him. She was stretched out in her chair, which had rotated so that her woman was within arms reach of Tenchi. Tenchi reached out and tapped her head.

            The woman jerked awake, nearly falling off her chair in surprise. She did fall off when she caught sight of Tenchi, his arm still reached out and a wary look on his face.

            "Excuse me, but do you have any rooms available?" Tenchi asked, looking down at the woman. He had to, really, as she was sprawled rather unprofessionally on the floor. The woman slowly picked herself up.

            "I'm sorry?" she said, trying to overcome the shock that God had suddenly appeared in front of her.

            "I asked if there were any rooms free," Tenchi repeated. "I think we'll need about seven."

            "Seven rooms," the woman repeated. "We have seven rooms available."

            "Great," Tenchi replied. "Put them down under the name of..."

            "Tenchi Masaki," the woman finished. Tenchi smiled.

            "That's right," he said. "I take it you've heard of me then."

            "Who hasn't?" the woman replied. "You're Mr Masaki, hero of the galaxy and God."

            Tenchi nodded. "So, about those rooms?"

            "Oh, of course," the woman said hurriedly, trying to do about five things at once at different parts of her desk.

            "We'll be staying for maybe a couple of days," Tenchi said. "Until Thursday at the latest."

            "Of course. Would the Emperor's Suite be adequate?" the woman asked.

            "Well, probably not for all of us," Tenchi laughed. "But Ayeka and Sasami can have that room. I'm fine with anywhere."

            "Yes, sir," the woman said. "I'll just sort out your request now."

            "Please, call me Tenchi," Tenchi said. "It is my name, after all."

            "Of course, Tenchi," the woman apologised quickly. "I'm sorry."

            "Hey, I don't like being treated as if I'm someone special," Tenchi said generally. "Please tell everyone here just to treat me like any other customer. You can treat the others how they want, but just pretend I'm no one special. That's not an order, just a request."

            "Of course, Tenchi," the woman repeated. "I'll sort out your rooms right away. If you'll just wait here for a while, I'll be right with you."

            "No hurry," Tenchi said. "It's a nice place you've got here."

            Tenchi walked over to Ayeka and Ryoko. The others had already spread out.

            "They're just sorting out our rooms," Tenchi informed.

            "Good," Ryoko said. "I can't wait until I'm in an onsen. Hey, Tenchi, maybe we can get together later and have a bit of bathroom fun?"

            "Ryoko, how dare you?" Ayeka exclaimed. "This is a public place. I cannot believe you would try something like that. Actually, I do believe you'd try it."

            "Was that an insult?" Ryoko asked.

            "Was that a question?" Ayeka replied.

            "Ladies, please," Tenchi said. "We're here to relax. Don't start fighting." Tenchi moved between the two and put an arm round each of them. "You're all my favourite."

            The two cuddled up to Tenchi, hardly bothered that the other was also there.

            "You know, maybe you two should try and get along," Tenchi suggested. "What do you think?"

            Tenchi didn't get to know what they thought, as the receptionist approached Tenchi then.

            "Tenchi, your rooms are ready," she said. "They are rooms seven to twelve inclusive, and the Emperor's Suite. Here are the keys." She handed them over. "Please enjoy your stay here, and feel free to ask for anything."

            "Thanks," Tenchi smiled. "We'll enjoy it here." He called the others. "Hey, our rooms are ready. Should we check them out before doing anything else?"

            The general consensus was yes, so they went to check out their rooms. Each was subtly different, but pretty much the same. The Emperor's Suite, however, was twice as big as the others, and a lot more luxurious. Ayeka and Sasami had that room. Ryoko had one to herself, as did Mihoshi and Washu. Yosho and Nobuyuki shared another, and Tenchi and Aki each had a room to themselves.

            After they had looked around their rooms, they met up in the main hall, which looked a lot like the reception area, only rather bigger. They split up, agreeing to meet up again at dinner.

            Tenchi, followed closely by Ayeka and Ryoko, went for a therapeutic massage. The others went to the nearest onsen, except Sasami, who wanted to walk through the woods. Aki went with her.

            They walked around for a while, Sasami meeting several little creatures. She stroked and petted them all, becoming their friends. Ryo-Ohki also met some friends. Aki watched on as Sasami stopped every few minutes to greet a furry animal. He even stroked some himself.

            Sasami gasped, and ran forwards. Aki went along after her, to see what she had found. It was a small squirrel-type animal. It appeared to have fallen out of a tree, and was now lying on the floor, deadly still. Sasami began to cry at the sight, while Aki looked at it and tried to concentrate.

            "Sasami, don't cry. He's still alive," Aki said. "I'll heal him."

            Aki crouched down and moved a hand over the fallen furry forest dweller. It began to stir, and then hopped up. It looked up at Aki, and then ran up his arm and onto his head. Sasami began to laugh as the squirrel tried its best to groom Aki, to thank him for saving its life.

            "Told you he was fine," Aki smiled.

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            Tenchi meanwhile was having the time of his lives. He was experiencing first-hand the pleasures of reflexology, and he liked it. Forty minutes had passed before he knew it. He was feeling really relaxed, so he went out to find the onsen. He found a quiet spot away from his father and grandfather and lay back, not caring about a thing.

            Obviously, something had to distract him. It's just the way. And his distraction was caused by Ryoko.

            "Tenchi, over here!" she called. Tenchi moved his head to see Ryoko hovering above the divide between the male and female sections. Of course, the most distracting thing about her was the absence of a towel or bathing suit. Completely naked, she drifted towards Tenchi.

            The animé Tenchi would have long since grown his eyes to fill up most of his face, but Tenchi didn't have that luxury. He quickly turned and tried to stop his nose from bleeding, a reaction to being aroused.

            Ryoko grabbed him from behind and hooked her arms around his waist. "Hold on, Tenchi," she advised, as she picked him up and flew him into the female section. He was dropped from a height into the water. He quickly came back up, and quickly turned round as he came face to crotch with Ryoko.

            "Come on, Tenchi," Ryoko said. "It's nothing you don't know about already."

            Tenchi just stood there, looking intensely at a point several inches in front of his nose. He failed to notice Washu and Mihoshi, which was a bad mistake.

            "Well, well," Washu said. "Looks like we have a prime specimen here, Mihoshi. All ready for the donation, no doubt."

            "What do you mean, Little Washu?" Mihoshi asked.

            "Never you mind," Washu muttered. "Ryoko, put some clothes on, or at least a towel. I didn't raise you to behave like that."

            "You didn't raise me at all," Ryoko muttered, but very quietly. Washu probably heard her anyway, but chose to ignore it, instead focussing on Tenchi and smiling rather unnervingly.

            "Oh, Tenchi, hi!" Sasami called. She had just come back from her walk with Aki. She wore a towel, and probably nothing else, as were the others, excepting Ryoko. Tenchi very quickly chose not to think about that. "Ayeka, guess who's here?" she called back into the changing room.

            Tenchi sank underwater, and started to blow bubbles from his mouth. He gasped for air and quickly resurfaced, to see Ayeka standing at the side.

            "Sasami, it's not polite to shout like that," Ayeka told her sister, before noticing Tenchi's very nervous face. She raised a hand to her chest and stood there, watching Tenchi, as he watched her.

            Ryoko broke up the moment, by moving directly in front of Tenchi's face, giving him a full view of her most prized possessions. Tenchi tried his hardest not to look, and almost succeeded. He turned around and swam away, amazed that he was able to do so.

            Disappointed, Ryoko turned towards Ayeka, and disappeared. As Ayeka stepped into the water, Ryoko casually untucked her towel and held onto a corner. Tenchi's nosebleed rapidly increased as he saw the princess's form, and he collapsed backwards. Sasami kindly pulled him behind a rock, while Ayeka hurriedly ducked into the water and grabbed her towel back from Ryoko. Ryoko was laughing hard at this, despite the looks she was getting from Washu, and to a lesser extent Mihoshi.

            Sasami revived Tenchi, and stood back while he shook himself awake again. She stood in front of him, smiling a bit too much.

            "Wha, what is it?" Tenchi asked.

            "Your nose is bleeding," Sasami said happily.

            "What? No, it's because of the hot water. It always does that," Tenchi said quickly, trying to cover for himself.

            "Nuh-uh," Sasami disagreed. "You're a bad boy, aren't ya, Tenchi?"

            Tenchi backed away slightly, watching the girl's face for a change from the grin currently on it. Realising there wasn't going to be one, Tenchi sagged his head into the water. "Sorry for being naughty," he gurgled. Sasami patted him on the head.

            "How dare you do that?" Ayeka shouted at Ryoko, barely able to contain her rage. Ryoko pointed behind her.

            "They're looking," she said calmly. They were. Tenchi and Sasami were poking their heads around the rock. Ayeka hesitated, and then looked at Ryoko again.

            "You," she said coldly. "You won't get away from insulting me!"

            "Um, ladies?" Tenchi ventured.

            "What?" Ayeka shouted.

            "Nothing." Tenchi dropped behind the rock again.

            A fight was inevitable. Ayeka's miniature logs appearing in the air was a sign of that. The electricity crackling through the air around Ryoko was another.

            Aki popped his head over the divider between the baths. "Hey, is Tenchi here? He's not in this bit." He spotted Tenchi. "Hi, Tenchi. How's it going?"

            Tenchi just pointed towards the two fighters. Aki shrugged and hopped over the tall wall and drifted between the two.

            "Out of our way," Ryoko growled.

            "Yes, stay out of this," Ayeka said.

            Electricity crackled across Aki, both from Ayeka's log field and Ryoko. Aki flinched at the attack, but shrugged it off.

            "Don't bother," he suggested. "You're here to relax, remember?"

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            Somehow the matter was resolved, and they all spent the rest of the afternoon in the water. They all came out wrinkled, and after drying themselves and getting dressed they wandered round the place some more, noting anywhere they might want to try out later. But they didn't get much chance to see everywhere, as it was almost dinnertime, so they went back and found the very large dining room, the tables elegantly laid out for the guests.

            Dinner that evening was nice. Although Sasami could have made something better, she was quite happy to not cook for a while and let someone do things for her.

            Tenchi, as usual, was flanked by Ryoko and Ayeka. Mihoshi sat opposite him, along with Sasami and Nobuyuki. Aki sat on the left side of the table, while Yosho and Washu sat on the right.

            "It's quite nice here, isn't it?" Tenchi asked, as though it needed asking.

            Obviously everyone agreed, and the usual chatter began to seep in. Tenchi sat back from the table, mentally, and watched everyone.

            "This really is nice," he said to himself.

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            They stayed there for the next couple of days, before finally deciding to return home. They thanked the staff at the spa, and Tenchi took them back.

            The house had inexplicably become untidy, despite there having been no one there for the past few days. They spent the next while cleaning up, Ryoko and Ayeka vying for Tenchi's attention. Tenchi, however, remained a decent person and praised everyone equally for what they were doing.

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            It just so happened that Tenchi was walking to the shrine later on. He was going to give it its daily clean. Even God backs down when his grandfather tells him to do something. Besides, it was his turn anyway.

            As Tenchi was walking along a dirt path, a part of the scenic route to the shrine, he noticed something odd. He usually let his mind wander, sensing things that were happening in other places, but today he couldn't. He stopped and frowned. He tried to use his foresight ability, but found he couldn't do that either. He tried triggering his evolution, and became really concerned when he didn't change.

            "This can't be good," Tenchi said quietly.

            "No, it can't." A familiar voice came from behind him. Tenchi whipped round and stepped back in surprise at what he saw.

            Sel had returned. Again.

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In the next episode of Supplement DB:

            Sel fights Tenchi. Again. It's "Reality Check" time, as the very meaning of everything comes under questioning. Any more information would spoil the plot, but the DB in the saga title stands for DragonBall. It's also a welcome return for the review and preview writers, as we now have an eight-episode contract. It's a much-anticipated return to work for us two, but don't expect the same kind of fanservice as in the last saga.

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The review button is there should you want to use it. You can also email me your comments and queries at chosen_one123@hotmail.com. Any and all questions are valid, and will all be read. I shall personally reply, as I don't have much of a life outside this computer. I thank you for your support of this continuing story.


	2. Reality Check

Previously on Supplement DB:

            As the trip to Bespin, the spa planet, wasn't important, it won't be mentioned. However, Tenchi lost all his powers, leaving him very mortal. What's worse is that Sel is back, and it's unlikely he's going to do an Aki and turn good. Obviously, in the middle of the forest, no one will know he's in trouble, or indeed where he is, so Tenchi is on his own.

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            Supplement DB, Part II – Reality Check

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            "Sel?" Tenchi exclaimed.

            "That's me, Tenchi," Sel replied. "I'm back, thanks to a bit of magic from a very powerful wizard. He revived me just to destroy you."

            "Sel, do you remember the last time we fought?" Tenchi asked. "When I became a Super Saiyan, I easily beat you. Even if you're a lot stronger now, I'm even more so. Nothing can stand against my Super Saiyan 3."

            "If you're so confident you can defeat me, show me your powers," Sel challenged.

            "Hey, your death sentence," Tenchi replied. He stayed still for a second, and frowned.

            "Anything wrong?" Sel asked.

            Tenchi concentrated more. Still nothing happened. He tried yelling to raise his power, but nothing was happening. What was worse was that he didn't seem to be able to do anything else either. He straightened up.

            "I have a feeling this is going to hurt," Tenchi said quietly.

            "You're right about that, at least," Sel said. He pointed two fingers at Tenchi. Tenchi crossed his arms to block it, but the defence he put up had the absorbency of a wet sausage. The blast Sel shot went straight through Tenchi's left upper arm. The arm instantly dropped and became useless, even more so than before.

            Tenchi yelled in pain and clutched at his arm. Sel took the opportunity to blast a hole through Tenchi's right thigh. Tenchi collapsed on the ground, almost paralysed with pain, and on the verge of losing consciousness.

            "You can't win, Tenchi," Sel said. "With these spells placed around you to prevent you from using your powers, you're no more significant than any other mortal being I've squished. It may be true that the spell to stop you becoming a God is permanent, while the one to block the rest of your powers will only last a couple of weeks, but that's more than enough time to destroy you."

            "No," Tenchi murmured weakly. "If you kill me, nothing will ever exist."

            "This isn't about destroying the universe, Tenchi," Sel replied. "This is about revenge. Twice before you have defeated and humiliated me. Somehow you have always managed to come up with the power to destroy me, even though I once killed you. Can you imagine my shame? My frustration?"

            Sel walked up to Tenchi, facing him with the sun behind him. "Of course you can't," he said. "You've always been strong. But now, with no powers to help you, and no friends around, you're helpless. And this is all because of the wizard who revived me and cast those spells on you. I'm going to enjoy this, you mortal."

He pointed two fingers at Tenchi, blocking Tenchi's view of the sun and surrounding Sel's hand with light.

            "Only human."

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            "Dodge this."

            Ryoko blasted Sel straight through his head. She lowered her arm from the horizontal position it was in, inches from Sel's head, and bent down to help Tenchi. Sel's body, minus his head, collapsed on the floor.

            "Tenchi, are you okay?" she asked anxiously. She inspected the holes in Tenchi's limbs. "You need to see Washu straight away."

            "R, Ryoko," Tenchi struggled to say. "Sel will regenerate."

            "Already on it," Aki called. He picked up Sel's body and threw it into the air. He moved his hands to his side and formed a large kameya-meya blast, which he fired at Sel. Sel's body vaporised, as easily as it had done less than a year ago. Aki knelt down beside Tenchi.

            "You should see someone about those holes, Tenchi," he said. He picked him up and moved Tenchi onto his back. He then flew home as fast as he could, carrying the now unconscious Tenchi on his back, with Ryoko in close pursuit.

            Ryoko sent a thought message to Washu. "Mom, Tenchi's in big trouble. Please help him. He's going to die."

            Washu snapped to attention. She quickly opened a hole in space and flew out, to arrive alongside Ryoko and Aki. "What's the trouble?" she asked as she looked at Tenchi. Tenchi looked terrible. Blood was pouring out of his wounds down Aki's back. His face was deathly pale, and his mouth gaped open in pain, even though Tenchi was unconscious.

            "He's got huge holes in his arm and leg," Aki replied, still flying along. "They're energy burns. He's nearly dead."

            "Quick. Get him to my lab." Washu summoned her laptop and rapidly tapped commands into it. A dimensional hole appeared ahead of them. They flew through and appeared in Washu's lab.

            "Activate Emergency Medical Holographic System," Washu ordered to the large room, as Aki lay Tenchi down onto a nearby bench. The air shimmered and a man appeared. He was middle-aged, tall and bald, with a prominent forehead. He wore a tight dark blue surgical gown.

            "Please state the nature of the medical emergency," the man said as he looked round.

            "It's Tenchi," Washu replied. As the man walked up to him, she explained. "He's got energy holes in his upper arm and thigh. He's lost a lot of blood."

            "Give me a neurological diffuser, now," the man said sharply, holding out his hand. "We need to stop the patient's brain from receiving permanent damage. Then we need to regenerate these holes."

            As the doctor got to work, Washu approached Ryoko and Aki. "You'd better leave now," Washu said. "You probably shouldn't hang around to see this."

            "Washu, what is that?" Aki asked.

            "He is the EMH I created," Washu replied, as she led them out of her lab. "After the heart disease incident, I decided to create the best doctor ever, to cope with anything else that might occur. He's a hologram, and he has the instant knowledge of everything medical, biological and a good deal of other stuff too. He's also very busy. Please leave now."

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            I woke up. I was in a white room. I lay on the floor next to a small desk with a bit of paper on it. That was the only thing there with me. I stood up and tried to step forwards, but the room suddenly rushed around me. The walls receded and everything grew bigger. I managed my way over to the desk and leaned on it for support. I happened to glance at the paper. It had some writing on it, and my name. The handwriting was strangely familiar. I read the note.

            "You are in a fanfic based on a television show, Tenchi."

            It all made sense. The important events all being played up, the parts in between sketchy and vague. The feeling that someone was telling me what to do, of being in a million different situations at once.

            And that's when it hit me. I was in a fanfic based on a television show.

            I felt dizzy, and collapsed.

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            I woke up. I was in a white room. I lay on the floor next to a small desk with a bit of paper on it. That was the only thing there with me. I stood up and tried to step forwards, but the room suddenly rushed around me. The walls receded and everything grew bigger. I managed my way over to the desk and leaned on it for support. I happened to glance at the paper. It had some writing on it, and my name. The handwriting was strangely familiar. I read the note.

            "You are in a cartoon, Tenchi."

            It all made sense. The fundamental lack of depth of my surroundings. The black outlines of every object and person I interacted with, the other stuff fading into the background. The impossibly large eyes everyone had.

            And that's when it hit me. I was in a cartoon.

            I felt dizzy, and collapsed.

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            Tenchi woke up slowly. The pain in his arm and leg had gone.

            Tenchi was in Washu's lab, stretched out on a table. Washu, now in her adult form, was busy monitoring a dozen things at once. The doctor had done his job, and was now deactivated.

            "Washu?" Tenchi managed.

            "Relax, Tenchi," Washu said. "You need to rest. You nearly died."

            "Sel?"

            "Aki managed to destroy him." Washu looked directly at him. "Tenchi, what happened?"

            "My powers," Tenchi said quietly. "They've gone."

            "What do you mean, gone?"

            "A wizard cast a spell on me," Tenchi said. "It stops me from using my powers. All of them. I'm only human."

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            "So now you're mortal?" Mihoshi asked.

            "Yes," Tenchi told the crowd, gathered in front of him in the main room. "There's no way to reverse the spell. I'm never going to be God again."

            "Tenchi, have you created the Multiverse yet? What about life?" Washu asked.

            "I was going to get round to it, but now I can't," Tenchi said.

            "But don't you see? You will do. You will do because we're still here. If you truly aren't going to become God again, the entirety of existence would have immediately never have existed in the first place. But here we are. You are going to create the Universe, Tenchi," Washu said. "But the question is when?"

            "Hey, that's right!" Tenchi said, cheering up. "The no God spell has to end sometime, so I can create everything." He sagged down again. "But how? The only way I can think of is to get the wizard to end it."

            "If only there was some other magic we could use, to counteract this spell," Sasami said. "Then you could be God again."

            "Yeah," Tenchi nodded. "Something like the DragonBalls. You wouldn't understand," he added when he saw their confused faces.

            "What are those dragon balls?" Ayeka asked.

            "The DragonBalls are in an animé show," Tenchi said. "I watched a few episodes. It gave me some ideas for a couple of attacks. Anyway, these seven orange Balls each have a different number of stars in them, from one to seven of them. When brought together and a spell is chanted, they release a magical dragon called Shenron. Shenron can grant three wishes to whoever brought the Balls together."

            Tenchi sighed. "Unfortunately they don't exist. They're only in a cartoon. If they were real, I could use one of the wishes to end the anti-God spell on me."

            "Bummer," Ryoko said.

            "Yes, it is," Tenchi replied.

--------------------

            Tenchi went to his room, to think in private about what had happened. Some unknown wizard had cast a couple of spells on him, and then brought back Sel to kill him. Why, he didn't know.

            Tenchi bolted upright on his bed. There were two spells on him. Sel said that the one removing everything but his God form wasn't permanent, but would wear off in a couple of weeks. At least now he had a chance.

            Something on his desk started beeping. There was nothing normally on his desk that did beep, aside from his alarm clock, so whatever was doing so shouldn't be there. He got up from his bed and wandered over, and nearly choked when he saw what it was.

--------------------

            Tenchi came rushing down the stairs, nearly tripping up over himself, and waving a piece of paper and something like a large white stop clock.

            "Hey, what've you got there, Tenchi?" Ryoko asked.

            "It's the Dragon Radar!" Tenchi exclaimed.

            "The what?" Ryoko obviously didn't realise what it was.

            Tenchi tried to calm himself down. "This thing here," he said, holding up the white thing. It had a green display. On it was a flashing star and a timer, counting down to zero. "This is the Dragon Radar. Remember when I was telling you about the DragonBalls? Well, this thing can detect where they are. It also shows how long they're going to remain here, before disappearing."

            "Does that mean they are real, then?" Mihoshi asked.

            "Yes, they are," Tenchi replied. "Isn't it great? The DragonBalls do exist! I can collect them and wish my God powers back!"

            "Is that Radar detecting one now?" Ayeka asked.

            "Yes," Tenchi said. "Washu, you need to take us there now. Can you use this to find out where it is?"

            "I think so. I can probably also get you there as well," Washu replied.

            "Do it. Do it now. We only have about half an hour," Tenchi said.

            "You're in a bit of a rush for half an hour," Aki said.

            "You don't understand. When I found the Radar, I also found this." Tenchi slapped the piece of paper he was holding onto the table. It was a letter.

--------------------

            'Tenchi,

            'I know about your inability to use any of your powers. I know because I was once you. That's right. I am you from the future. I came back to give you this Dragon Radar. You can use it to find the DragonBalls you were going on about. However, there are some differences between the animé and the real world.

            'The DragonBalls each represent a different element, out of fire, ice, thunder, wind, light, earth and psyche. They do contain within them a powerful dragon called Shenron, and you will get three wishes from him. However, to prevent these DragonBalls from ever being used by anyone except you, I created them to phase between dimensions. They will only be fully aligned on Earth for at most a couple of hours, and their locations are random, and change every time. They come round on a cycle of eight months, so there is more than one opportunity to get them. They do not exist fully on Earth until they come into contact with a living being. But just knowing where they are isn't enough. You need to touch them as well, or they'll just continue on their cycle. The timer on the Radar shows how much time you have left before the Balls disappear. The DragonBalls will also go back to phasing through the dimensions after one year after the first contact, so you'll have to collect and gather them all within that time frame.

            "PTO for the password to summon Shenron.

            'The first Ball, the one that has just appeared, is the four-star DragonBall. Go get them, and happy hunting.

            'Tenchi Masaki,

            'P.S. Tell Washu to hurry up with the portal.'

--------------------

            "Washu, you read what I'll write," Tenchi said. "Create the portal now. It's vital."

            "Okay, okay," Washu huffed. "I'm making it now. I'll just extrapolate from the readings and find a suitable exit point."

--------------------

            And she did. The red portal opened up somewhere in a remote grassland. In the distance was a river, winding its way through the land. A large patch of grass was in front of the portal. In roughly the middle of this patch was the four-star DragonBall, about the size of a person's hand.

            Surrounding the Ball were about fifty elephants.

            "Hey, those elephants are pretty closely packed," Tenchi observed. This was a slight understatement. There was no room for anyone to get in, not unless they were willing to crawl under an elephant. The complete consensus was that they weren't.

            "Hey, I can fly over them," Aki said. "Give me the Radar. I'll find it."

            "Okay," Tenchi said, handing him the Radar. "I'd guess it's about in the middle. But hurry, there's only ten minutes left, thanks to Washu."

            "Hey, if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't be here at all, and you'd have to wait eight months for it to come back," Washu said.

            "Sorry, Washu."

            "Little."

            "Anyway, I'll just go then," Aki said. He lifted off and flew towards the centre of the herd.

            "I'm going with him," Ryoko said, setting off too. "I hope there's a reward for the person who finds it first," she added, winking at Tenchi.

            "Yes," Tenchi said. "The person who finds it brings the Universe one step closer to still existing."

            Aki was hovering over the herd. According to the Radar he was right above the Ball. Unfortunately he was also right above an elephant. He lowered himself down slowly between it and another one, and bent down. He could see it.

            "Hey, Aki, is it there?" Ryoko called.

            "Yeah, I can see it," Aki called back. "I'm having a bit of difficulty getting to it though."

            "I'll take care of that," Ryoko called. There was a loud explosion, and the herd began to stampede.

            Just as Aki was reaching for the Ball. He hadn't experienced having his hand crushed before, and with any luck he never would again. Having a hand stepped on by a fully-grown elephant is not an experience one would soon want to repeat. Aki just sat there holding his broken hand while elephants moved around him.

            The herd had moved on, leaving an open path for the others. They rushed towards Aki, shouting words of concern.

            "I'll look at that when we get back," Washu comforted.

            Ryoko meanwhile had landed next to the DragonBall. She was about to pick it up when she heard Tenchi talking to her.

            "Now look what you've done," Tenchi was saying. "Aki's hand is crushed. You shouldn't have done that."

            "It was only a small explosion," Ryoko said.

            "That's not the point. I'm sure that Aki could have got it without your help," Tenchi said. He walked over to her and bent down, picking up the DragonBall. It was perfectly smooth, aside from a few lumps of dirt that had stuck to it.

            "Come on," Tenchi said. "Washu, take us home."

==============================

In the next episode of Supplement DB:

            Two more DragonBalls appear, and Tenchi goes off to get them. With the help of the Dragon Radar and his newly returned powers, Tenchi has nothing to worry about. It's a fairly boring episode, "Return to Power". Well, there are seven DragonBalls, and they all have to be collected before anything really interesting can happen, but believe me, it does.


	3. Return to Power

Previously on Supplement DB:

            Sel was defeated, yet again, by Aki this time. Tenchi recovered from his fatal wounds, and was overjoyed to discover a solution to his problems: the DragonBalls. Having found and retrieved the first of seven Balls, the group returns home. Oh, by the way, I have here a signed promise saying Sel will never return yet again. Which is nice.

==============================

            Supplement DB, Part III – Return to Power

==============================

            The four-star DragonBall rested on the table. It had been cleaned, so it sparkled. Inside it were four dark orange stars. It was the Thunder Ball.

            "But how do you know it's the Thunder Ball, Tenchi?" Sasami asked.

            "Well, when you look at it from a certain angle, an image appears inside it," Tenchi said. "The image in this one is of thunder, so it's the Thunder Ball."

            "Where is it?"

            "Come here, and I'll show you."

            Sasami shuffled over to Tenchi. Tenchi moved slightly to let Sasami have a better view.

            "Now, if you put your head just about here," Tenchi said, guiding Sasami's head, "you'll see the image. If you can't, just move around slightly until you can."

            "Oh wow!" Sasami exclaimed. "It looks like a thunder bolt! Look! The stars have some lines between them, so they look like a zigzag of thunder."

            "See?" Tenchi said. "It's the Thunder DragonBall."

            "So what are you going to do now, Tenchi?" Ayeka asked.

            "I guess I'll just wait for all the DragonBalls to appear," Tenchi replied. "I don't know when the next one will show up. It could be in a few minutes, or I could have just missed it. Either way, I can't do much until I've collected them all."

            Tenchi leaned back on the couch and stretched. He suddenly remembered something. "Oh, that's right. I forgot."

            "Forgot what?" Mihoshi asked.

            "The wizard has actually put two spells on me. One to stop me becoming God, and the other to stop all my other powers. The second one of those is going to end in a couple of weeks, apparently."

            "So you'll get some of your powers back?"

            "That's right. With those powers I can use instant translocation. I won't need to use one of Washu's portals then. I'll also be able to go Supreme Saiyan, and evolve to my third evolutionary form. It's just my God form and powers I won't be able to use then, such as time travel."

            "Still, it's good that you're going to get some of your powers back soon, isn't it?" Mihoshi asked.

            "Yes, it is," Tenchi replied, relaxing. It was good.

--------------------

            Tenchi had a computer. It wasn't new, but it was relatively powerful. He was just messing around, reading some stories people had published on the Internet. His Dragon Radar was right next to him, so he would know as soon as another DragonBall appeared. He was basically just killing time.

            Tenchi stretched and stood up. He decided he was thirsty, so he went out of his room and into the kitchen, where he poured himself a nice drink. On his way out he bumped into Washu. Not literally, though.

            "Oh, hi, Tenchi," Washu greeted.

            "Hello, Little Washu," Tenchi replied. "Doing anything interesting?"

            "I'm talking to you at the moment, so no," Washu grinned. "Just kidding. I'm not up to much. Just designing an alkane super-catalyst. Any scientist on Earth would kill for it, but it's fairly simple to make."

            "I see," Tenchi replied. He wasn't sure what she was going on about, so he did what any guy would do, and nodded. He had lost access to the infinite pool of knowledge with his powers, so the only things he knew were what he had looked up while he had had access. Unsurprisingly, alkane-related chemistry wasn't something he had researched.

            Washu could tell he was bored. "So what are you up to, Tenchi?" she asked. "Finally made up your mind about the whole sample thing?"

            That question understandably took Tenchi by surprise. Washu hadn't bothered him much about that for a couple of months now. "N, no," he replied. "I'm still not going to. I mean, yes, I love you, but I'm not going to do that. At least not yet."

            "So there is hope," Washu said. "But what are you doing, anyway?"

            "Oh, I'm just reading a few fanfics," Tenchi replied. "They're stories based on something else, written by fans of that thing, say, a television series or a film. I'm actually reading one based on Tenchi Muyo! at the moment."

            "Seeing how other people would manipulate our lives, eh?" Washu asked.

            "Kind of," Tenchi said. "They don't know just how similar our lives are to the show, but it is interesting to see what they write about."

            "What do they write about?" Washu asked.

            "Oh, just general situations. Some crossovers. And quite a bit of hentai."

            "Hentai, eh?" Washu remarked. "That's interesting."

            Tenchi started gazing hurriedly around the room, rubbing the back of his head. "Well, it's not all that bad. Yeah, some are just pathetic, but some are very well written."

            "And how would you know, Tenchi? My little guinea pig doing a bit of learning on his own?"

            "It's not like that," Tenchi said hurriedly.

            "Well, it should be," Washu said. "Tenchi, you know it's perfectly natural. I don't think anyone can judge you for that."

            "Maybe, but that's not the point," Tenchi replied. "Some writers really have deep insights into the characters' relationships. Some of it could even be applied to us."

            "Are you going to let it?" Washu asked.

            "I'm not sure," Tenchi replied. "I still don't know how similar the series and our lives are."

            "That's true," Washu nodded. "Anyway, you enjoy yourself now."

            Tenchi blushed himself all the way back to his room.

--------------------

            Two weeks later, and no other DragonBalls had appeared. Tenchi was beginning to think that he had just missed the cycle, and was going to have to wait for another eight months.

            He was musing as he lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling.

            Aki walked in. His hand was now back to normal, although it had been for almost two weeks. Washu had repaired the bones just after they got back from the trip to see the elephants, and Aki had healed the skin. It was fine.

            "Hey, Ten, dinner's nearly ready," he said.

            "Aki, what do you reckon the odds are that all the DragonBalls have gone already?" Tenchi asked. "There hasn't been a single beep for the past few weeks."

            "Well, maybe they don't all appear at once," Aki replied. "Maybe you just have to be patient."

            "I guess," Tenchi said absently. He got up.

            Aki turned to go, but stopped abruptly.

            "Hey, what's the hold-up?" Tenchi complained from behind.

            "I've just sensed a disturbance in your energy level," Aki said.

            "So what?" Tenchi asked. "Power levels wobble all the time."

            "No, what I sensed was different," Aki said. "Tenchi, try becoming a Saiyan."

            "Very funny, Aki," Tenchi said, looking sideways at his brother. "You got me before, but not now."

            "I mean it, Tenchi."

            "So do I."

            Aki sighed restlessly and swung round to hit Tenchi. Tenchi caught the fist.

            "My, that was quick," Aki said, not without sarcasm. "Are you sure you don't have your powers back?"

            Tenchi thought for a second. He started powering up, and became a Saiyan. He jerked his head up towards Aki, his expression a mixture of surprise and joy.

            "I told you I could feel something," Aki said. "The magic must have worn off. You've got your powers back."

--------------------

            Tenchi flew down the stairs and into the kitchen, where the girls were. They were all preparing for dinner. Tenchi stopped in the doorway, hovering a few inches above the ground.

            "Hey, guys," Tenchi said. "Check it out."

            There was a collective gasp, and the sounds of hands loosening from dishes. The pots began to fall, but Tenchi stopped them in midair. The dishes then floated onto the table, guided by Tenchi.

            "I have my powers back!" Tenchi said.

            "Hey, wow, that's great!" Sasami and Mihoshi cheered.

            The others gave similar words of congratulations.

            "You know, I've never been so glad of becoming a Saiyan before," Tenchi remarked.

            A beeping behind him made him turn around. Aki was holding the Radar.

            "Hey, Ten, you might want to check this out," Aki said, holding it out. "It started beeping just after you flew out of your room."

            Tenchi took the Radar. A DragonBall had appeared, some distance away. It was going to go again in a couple of hours.

            "Hey, I'd better get this," Tenchi said. "I'll just be gone a second. Instant translocation really has its advantages."

            He pointed two fingers towards his forehead and vanished.

--------------------

            He reappeared in a desert. There was nothing but sand everywhere. According to the Radar the DragonBall was right next to him, but he couldn't see it anywhere. He had no idea where it could have gone, yet it was quite clearly there. The Radar said so.

            He looked around for a minute, and then had the idea of looking down. The Ball must be buried below the sand.

            "I guess it's time for some digging," Tenchi sighed. "Wait, what am I thinking? I can just blast all the sand away. Time for the Super Saiyan to make his appearance, then."

            Tenchi lowered himself, and began to power up. He didn't just want to become a Super Saiyan. He wanted to create a strong force that blew the sand away. He started yelling, and the sand started billowing away from him. He raised himself to a Saiyan, and then to the level beyond that. He kept on blowing sand away until he spotted something about fifty metres below sand level. He flew down and looked at it closer. It was the six-star DragonBall. He picked it up, with nearly two hours to spare. He was about to go home, when beeping from the Radar stopped him. Apparently, another Ball had just appeared, this one with an existence of twelve minutes.

            Tenchi used instant translocation to go there instead.

--------------------

            He found himself above the sea. Not expecting to reappear above water, Tenchi fell a bit, before starting to fly. The DragonBall was somewhere in the depths of the ocean. Tenchi shrugged and lowered himself in, careful to keep hold of the other Ball.

            The water parted for him as he lowered himself. Tenchi had created a bubble around himself, which would conveniently allow him to breathe underwater, as well as keeping him dry. He descended fairly quickly, as the new Ball would disappear in a little under ten minutes, and he didn't know how much further he had to go. It could be a few metres or a few miles. Even with all his powers he had his limitations.

            The light from the surface dimmed. Tenchi powered up his aura, which cast a shining light all around. Now that he could see well again, he continued going down.

            He reached the bottom a couple of minutes later. A few strange and puzzled fish swam around nearby, curious about this glowing object. Tenchi looked round for the DragonBall, hoping it wasn't buried like the other one was. He followed the Radar to a rock. The rock was actually hollow, probably carved out by oceanic currents and plants. Tenchi could see the Ball inside.

            Instead of trying to reach it through the little gap he was peering through, Tenchi merely formed a small energy ball and destroyed the rock around the orange sphere. The DragonBall fell to the ground amidst the rubble left behind by the small explosion. Tenchi bent down and picked it up, as the time remaining counted down the last seconds.

            He stood up and looked at the DragonBall he had just obtained. It was the three-star Ball, and it looked fine considering the rock around it had been partially obliterated. Of course, Tenchi wasn't worried. Despite their appearance, the DragonBalls were very sturdy, not likely to be destroyed by some energy blast.

            Tenchi was starting to feel dizzy. The oxygen in his bubble was starting to run out. He instantly translocated back home, letting his bubble rise to the surface. The bubble surprised a few fish and a shark on its way up, before popping on the surface. This in turn led a nearby fishing boat to think a whale was nearby, and they packed up quickly and left. They didn't want to be fishing somewhere with a creature around that could produce an air bubble that big. As a result, not enough fish was brought home, and there were some hungry people in town that night.

--------------------

            Tenchi reappeared on the kitchen table, his foot in a salad bowl. He quickly hopped off and turned round to face the people sat around the table, who had been eating before Tenchi appeared.

            "Hey, you're back," Ryoko said. "I missed you."

            "I see you have two more DragonBalls, Tenchi," Ayeka said.

            "Yep," Tenchi replied. "Just four more to go."

            "Tenchi, which ones are they?" Sasami asked.

            Tenchi walked round the table to Sasami, and put the two Balls in front of her. He spun one then the other round.

            "This one here is the Ice Ball," Tenchi said, pointing towards the six-star DragonBall. "You can see the symbol of ice if you look just here." Tenchi positioned Sasami's head in the right place. It was an elaboration of a simple stick icon of ice, each star inside the DragonBall at the end of each point. Opposite stars had a line drawn between them, so the three lines crossed in the middle. He then moved her head over to the three-star DragonBall. "This one is the Fire Ball," Tenchi said. "And there is the symbol for fire." Each of the three stars tipped the three flame ends of the picture.

            "Oh, wow," Sasami gasped. "Isn't it amazing how the stars help to form the image?"

            "Well, there wouldn't be one without them," Tenchi replied. "I'll just put these with the other one." He did so, and joined the others for dinner.

            "Sorry about the salad, everyone," Tenchi apologised.

--------------------

            Since Tenchi now had the majority of his powers back, he felt like using them. But he didn't go out flying, or becoming Supreme Saiyan, or sparring with Aki. He played music.

            Playing music was a great skill, requiring concentration, coordination and commitment. However, Tenchi knew how to play a piano and a violin, amongst many other instruments. It came with the extra knowledge from the evolutions.

            And so Tenchi sat in the spare room of the house, where he kept his few musical instruments. The grand piano sat in the middle of the room, positioned so that the player was just facing away from the door, and opposite the window. A set of drums sat near it, just apart from a wall. A trumpet and a saxophone rested on specially constructed shelves in the far corner of the room, while a guitar and case leaned against the wall, just next to the door. A smaller case rested on a small table next to it, containing a violin. A flute and shakuhachi rested on a similar table on the opposite side of the room. An electric guitar and an amplifier rested in a stand near the drums. It was a fair collection, and Tenchi could play them all.

            Tenchi was sitting on the piano stool in front of the largest musical instrument in the house. His eyes were closed, as he thought of a piece to play. He raised his hands to the keys and began.

            Ayeka was currently nearby. She had heard Tenchi playing before, as had everyone else, but not that often. In fact, she had only heard Tenchi playing once, with the violin. She walked up to the door and quietly slid it open.

            Tenchi was playing the piano, his eyes still closed, his fingers darting about and pressing different keys. The song he was playing was amazing. Ayeka stood in the doorway, watching Tenchi and listening to the tune. She was so caught up by it that she hardly noticed when it ended, and Tenchi turned round to look at her.

            "Tenchi, that was beautiful!" Ayeka said.

            "Thanks," Tenchi replied.

            "What was the theme?" Ayeka asked.

            "No theme," Tenchi replied, getting up. "I was just thinking, and the song came into my head."

            "What were you thinking about?"

            "You," Tenchi replied. "Only you."

            Ayeka tuned slightly, blushing. Tenchi smiled and walked up to the violin. "Want to listen?" he asked.

            Ayeka didn't refuse, and sat down on the piano stool, while Tenchi started playing the violin. This tune was a well-known Earth one, being 'In the Hall of the Mountain King'. It didn't sound quite as good as it would have with the backing instruments, but it was a good rendition nonetheless. Ayeka listened as the song went on, enveloped in the music. Tenchi noticed this and smiled, as he continued to play.

            Once the song had finished, Tenchi packed away the violin. Ayeka sat with her eyes closed, remembering the song. Tenchi went and picked up the flute, before sitting down in front of the princess on another chair.

            Ayeka opened her eyes slowly, to see Tenchi looking at her, a smile of amusement on his face. "Wha, what it is?" she asked.

            Tenchi shook his head. "Oh, nothing," he replied. He waved the flute at Ayeka. "Tell you what. Would you like to listen to a really good tune?"

            "Of course," Ayeka replied.

            "Right," Tenchi nodded. "Hold this please." He gave Ayeka the flute, and stood up. "Now, this is a little-known technique called Multiform. It allows me to create copies of myself, all identical to me in every way. I'm going to make four of me."

            Ayeka gasped, as if to say something, but Tenchi had begun the technique. His body began to fade out, and split, as if four overlapping images of Tenchi were separating. Once they had completely split from each other, they all faded back in until they were normal.

            Ayeka gasped again, shocked at what she had just witnessed. One of the Tenchi's went over to the drums and sat down on the stool, preparing to play. Another went over to the electric guitar and picked it up. The last two approached Ayeka.

            "Excuse me, Ayeka," one of them said, "but I need to use the piano. Would you mind getting up?"

            "Don't worry, Ayeka," the other Tenchi said. "We're all Tenchi, remember? There's no original. We're all a part of Tenchi, although we do each have separate minds. Now, may I have the flute?"

            Ayeka handed it over silently.

            "Thanks," the flute-playing Tenchi said.

            "Now, this is a tune I really like," the Tenchi at the drums said.

            "It's actually from an animé series called Neon Genesis Evangelion," the one with the guitar said. "It's the theme tune for one of the characters."

            "I like it because it's so uplifting and cheery," the Tenchi at the piano said.

            "Wha, what?" Ayeka stammered.

            "Sorry," flute Tenchi said. "I think I'll do all the talking from now on. You see, we have a mental connection with each other, so we have a tendency to complete what the other is saying. Look, if it bothers you we can go back to being one."

            Ayeka shook her head. "I want to hear this tune," she said. "But how will you become one again?"

            "It's just a simple fusion, or polymerisation," Tenchi said. "None of us mind at all, but normally if you want to fuse with someone, both of you have to agree, or it won't work. Anyway, the tune."

            The flute-bearing Tenchi raised the flute to his lips and began to play it, along with the piano Tenchi. The others joined in shortly afterwards, while Ayeka sat on a chair and watched them all play 'Misato'. It really was an uplifting tune.

            Aki walked in while they were playing. He was surprised at first of the four Tenchi's, but he realised that he was using the Multiform technique he had heard about. He sat down and listened to them play.

            The Tenchi's finished and put away their various instruments, before moving to the middle of the room.

            "Fusion," the drums Tenchi said.

            "Ha!" they all called. They all glowed a bright blue, before merging into one form. The glowing stopped, and one Tenchi remained. He walked towards an empty chair and sat down.

            "I tell you," Tenchi said. "It may be good to be able to do that, but you can't have a half decent conversation with yourselves at all."

            "That was good, Ten," Aki said.

            "Thanks," Tenchi replied. "Although I didn't write it. I am merely the player, performing the work written before me by the composer."

            "Very philosophical, Tenchi," Aki said.

            "Isn't it, though?" Tenchi replied.

            "I've heard that the Multiform technique is very difficult to master," Aki said. "But I guess that God can do it, no trouble."

            "I'm not God any more," Tenchi replied. "Forgotten?"

            "But you will be soon, right?" Ayeka asked. "The rest of the DragonBalls will appear within the next several months, right?"

            "Course they will," Aki said. "Think about it. Tenchi created them, or will create them, or whatever. I've not known Tenchi to ever lie, so they're going to appear."

            "I just hope I manage to get them when they do come," Tenchi replied.

            "Hope nothing," Aki replied. "I'm sure you'll get them. I mean, what good's a Universe with no God?"

            "It's a Multiverse, Aki," Tenchi said. "Several Universes, all a part of one big whole."

            "Come on, with all this knowing more than everyone else," Aki said. "You're in danger of becoming one big hole yourself."

            Tenchi narrowed his eyes at Aki. "Okay, Masaki," he said. "Everyone's got a special feature, something that singles them out from everyone else. Mine's being God, apparently. What's yours?"

            "First undead guy?" Aki suggested. "First Super Saiyan? First Hyper Saiyan? Most powerful clone? Best God look-alike?"

            "Alright then," Tenchi said. "What would you say was yours, Ayeka?"

            "I have no idea," Ayeka replied. "I can't think of anything that's special to me. Well, I can, but it's you."

            "Oh, I know," Tenchi said. "You are the first person to kiss God. That's right, as far as I can remember."

            "Am I really?" Ayeka asked.

            "But I thought you two met only a year ago?" Aki asked.

            "So?" Tenchi said. "We've only known each other twelve months. What's your point?"

            "You've never kissed anyone your entire life before Ayeka here?" Aki asked.

            "Again, so? How many people have you kissed over your life so far?"

            Aki paused to think. "Oh. Hadn't thought of that."

==============================

In the next episode of Supplement DB:

            There's a lot less talk about kissing and other related topics in "And Then You Get to Burning". Instead, the author thought it was about time for a heat wave. This can only mean one thing: less clothing. It's an exciting episode, coming soon to a computer screen in front of you.


	4. And Then You Get to Burning

Previously on Supplement DB:

            Two more DragonBalls have been collected, and Tenchi now has most of his powers back. Actually, that's about it. There hasn't really been much else that has happened, has there?

==============================

            Supplement DB, Part IV – And Then You Get to Burning

==============================

            Tenchi was busy working in the carrot field. It was a hot late June day, and Tenchi was sweltering. He had removed his shirt a while ago, but was still overly warm. He paused yet again so wipe his forehead free of sweat.

            Ryo-Ohki was there to help Tenchi. Unfortunately she couldn't do anything. Tenchi was just watering the carrots, and waiting for them to grow, ready for picking in the autumn.

            Tenchi just happened to glance at Ryo-Ohki. He really had to admire the cabbit for trying. He reached down and pulled out a carrot.

            "Just this one, okay?" Tenchi said sternly.

            "Myah!" Ryo-Ohki was delighted. She proceeded to nibble at it, while Tenchi finished the last of the watering and went back to the house.

--------------------

            He entered, just as Ryoko was about throw an energy attack.

            "Ryoko, how many times have I told you not to fight with Ayeka?" Tenchi said tediously. He turned around to her opponent. "You're not Ayeka, are you?"

            Aki shook his head. "What gave me away?" he asked, grinning. "What d'ya want?"

            "Maybe an explanation?" Tenchi suggested. He turned towards Ryoko.

            "Ah, now, you see, we were bored, and Ayeka wasn't playing, so we decided to play with each other," Ryoko said.

            "And fighting is your idea of fun?" Tenchi said. "Aki, I thought you were a pacifist?"

            "I am," Aki said indignantly. "Look at me, not even a Saiyan. I'm giving her a chance."

            "Just take it outside," Tenchi said. "And Aki, no hurting her."

            "Hey!" Ryoko said. "Aren't you worried about me hurting him?"

            "No." Simply.

            Tenchi went to the kitchen and poured himself a drink, popping the last several ice cubes in while he was at it. He heard a beeping. The Dragon Radar.

            Tenchi rushed back to the drawers next to the front door, where he had left it. He picked it up and looked at it.

            Nothing. The beeping had stopped. There was no signal of a DragonBall temporarily fully on Earth anywhere. Tenchi tried shaking it, but that didn't do anything. He slapped it back down and went into the main room, thoroughly annoyed.

            "What is it, Tenchi?" Ayeka asked. It was just too hot for her to maintain her princess image, so she was wearing white shorts and a light blue shirt. She too was sipping an iced drink.

            "Oh, it's the DragonBalls," Tenchi replied. "There was one, but it's gone. And it's not coming back for eight months."

            "Oh no," Mihoshi voiced her concern. "I'm sorry."

            Mihoshi was wearing something like what she usually wore, only less of it. It worked, though, while at the same time looking very airy and cool.

            "Hey, it's actually no big deal," Tenchi replied. "So what if it's eight more months? It's not as if I was planning to do anything with my God form. I can still do pretty much everything important."

            "Well, if you're okay with it," Mihoshi said.

            Tenchi sighed and sunk into the chair between Ayeka and Mihoshi. "It's too hot to talk. Just drink."

            Even with the combined efforts of three electric fans and a cold drink each, they were still too hot.

--------------------

            Ryoko and Aki came back inside a few minutes later. Ryoko didn't immediately go at Ayeka for lying on Tenchi's lap, as she was, instead opting to cool herself down in front of a fan first. Aki did likewise.

            "So how was your fun?" Tenchi breathed, the heat somehow taking most of the volume from his voice.

            "Awful," Ryoko replied, rather out of breath.

            "Great," Aki said, the only sweat on his brow due to the heat, which was still a lot.

            "I can't believe he beat me so easily," Ryoko muttered.

            "Aki beat you?" Ayeka asked. "Ryoko, the most feared pirate in the Galaxy? That's nice."

            The heat has a habit of making everyone not care about anything.

            "Hey, do you reckon Washu can do anything about this heat?" Mihoshi asked.

            "Well, she did say she was going to spend the day in her private ski resort in her lab, but we weren't invited," Tenchi replied. "Actually, that's not a bad idea," he said with more enthusiasm. "Let's at least ask Washu if she can do anything."

--------------------

            So they did. Washu didn't have a ski lodge to hand, but her lab was very well air-conditioned. It happened to be the main part of her lab. It was reminiscent of a country field in full bloom, stretching on for miles. Washu was perched, as often she was, on a large floating red cushion in front of a holographic computer display and keyboard. The entire scenery was actually only a projection, made solid by complex light manipulation methods, but this was lost on the others. They were quite content to lie around and relax, or run around fighting.

            Which is what Ryoko and Ayeka were currently doing. It wasn't nearly as hot as outside, so the two were more like their usual selves, which meant lots of explosions.

            One particular explosion occurred a bit too close to Washu for liking. She was trying to work, and did not like even the intrusion by the others, let alone the fighting.

            "Tenchi?" Washu called. Tenchi, lying nearby and staring into the false sky, sat up and looked over.

            "What is it, Washu-chan?" he asked.

            "Those two," Washu replied, a fair bit of anger stored in her voice. "This is supposed to be my place. First of all, you lot invade my private place, but now those two are fighting. I really don't want them in here if they're going to do that."

            "Don't worry, Washu," Tenchi replied. For old times sake, a small garden gnome landed on his head. Tenchi shook it off. "I'll sort it out."

            Tenchi heaved himself up, and walked over to the fighters, standing in the middle of them.

            Ryoko was busy forming an energy blast when she spotted that her line of fire was blocked. "Hey, Tenchi, what are you doing?" she asked. "We're trying to fight here."

            "Precisely," Tenchi replied. "Look, Washu really isn't liking this, so I'm putting a stop to it now."

            "What do you mean, Lord Tenchi?" Ayeka asked.

            "What I mean is that Washu may well kick us out if you carry on fighting," Tenchi said. "Do you really want to go back outside? It's just gone lunchtime. Everyone knows that's the hottest part of the day. Pack it in, or we'll all be back there."

            "But Tenchi..." Ryoko began.

            "But what?" Tenchi asked. "Why are you fighting now?"

            Ryoko opened her mouth, and closed it again. It was just an unwritten way of life. Fight with Ayeka. There was no reason, she just did.

            "Why don't you two just lie down?" Tenchi suggested. "Come on. We'll all just relax together. Do it, or I'll ask Aki to give you another lesson about true power."

            Ryoko didn't like that threat, so powered down. Unfortunately she was still holding her energy ball. Without warning it shot towards Ayeka.

            But Tenchi was in the way. It hit him full on, causing smoke and dust to billow out all around.

            "Tenchi!" Ryoko and Ayeka both called.

            "Ryoko, look what you've done!" Ayeka shouted. "You've shot Tenchi!"

            "Well, it's not like I meant to," Ryoko shouted back. "I forgot I had the ball, that's all!"

            They both ran towards the clearing smoke. They stopped suddenly as they saw that Tenchi was quite fine. His clothes weren't even singed.

            "Now, either I'm very strong, or that attack wasn't very powerful," Tenchi said. "I think it's probably both."

            "Tenchi!" both girls called. They grabbed him and hugged him tightly.

            "Well," Tenchi gasped. "At least you're not fighting."

--------------------

            And they didn't. Instead, they lay down in the short grass, each of the girls using one of Tenchi's arms as a headrest. They were watching the clouds go by.

            "Tenchi, what did you mean when you said my attack wasn't very powerful?" Ryoko asked.

            "I should think it was quite clear," Tenchi replied. "Your attack didn't have much power in it, did it?"

            "Why don't you think so?"

            "Because I can tell what you're thinking," Tenchi said. "I know how you feel about each other, and I know Washu can sense your feelings for Ayeka, Ryoko."

            "What feelings?"

            "Yes, what feelings?" Ayeka asked.

            "You both at the very least respect each other. I know you like each other, and consider the other to be one of your closest friends," Tenchi said. "I just don't get why you constantly fight, seeing as how you're best friends."

            "Me, friends with her?" Ayeka asked, no visible attempt at hiding her shock.

            "That's right," Tenchi replied. "And don't bother trying to lie. You know how much I hate that."

            "Well, that may be true," Ryoko said. "But it's kind of an unspoken agreement. We're supposed to hate each other."

            "Yes," Ayeka agreed. "I am a princess, and she is a pirate. It just would not be right if we were to be friends."

            "But you are friends, and you both know it," Tenchi said tiredly. "Just think about the Earth for a second. What is it?"

            "Beautiful," Ryoko said.

            "Like Jurai," Ayeka said.

            "Primitive."

            "A protected planet."

            "Right," Tenchi said. "It's a protected planet. Technically it's not a part of the Jurai Empire. Once Earthlings develop interstellar travel, then maybe, but at the moment it isn't. Do you really think everyone on this planet knows who either of you two are?"

            "No," they both replied.

            "No," Tenchi said. "If you walk down the street, would anyone notice you? Apart from the hair thing, of course."

            "What's wrong with our hair?" Ayeka asked sharply.

            "Nothing. It's just not like what Earthlings consider normal, that's all. Blue and purple hair doesn't grow naturally on Earth. Anyway, no-one would recognise you. Do you really think anyone cares about whether you're friends or not?"

            "No."

            "Precisely. So why not be friends? Everyone on this planet couldn't care less. Look, put it this way: if you stop fighting, I can stop repairing things. If I do that, I'll have more time to spend with you. Sound good?"

            "So it's blackmail now, Tenchi?" Aki asked. He had walked over without being noticed, and now he lay down, pointing the opposite way to the others, his head close to the others'.

            "Absolutely," Tenchi replied.

            "So we're just looking at the clouds?" Aki asked.

            "Can do."

            "What d'you think of that one?" Aki asked, pointing at one.

            "It's a duck's head," Tenchi said.

            "No it's not," Ayeka said. "It's a rabbit."

            "Wrong," Ryoko said. "It's clearly a cloud."

            A moment passed.

            "Maybe you should just go to sleep," Aki suggested.

            "Only if I'm with you," Ryoko said, turning over and resting her head on Tenchi's chest, listening to his heartbeat.

            Aki tilted his head to look at her.

            "She means me," Tenchi whispered to him.

            "Thought as much."

--------------------

            They were rather rudely awoken about half an hour later by Sasami. As is customary, they moved slightly, opened their eyes, stretched, rubbed their eyes and stumbled to their feet. Such is the custom of the tired.

            "What is it, Sammy?" Tenchi asked.

            "Tenchi, do you know where Ryo-Ohki is?" Sasami asked. "I thought she was just playing somewhere here, but I can't find her anywhere."

            "Maybe she's outside," Tenchi suggested.

            "She probably is," Ryoko said. "Ryo-Ohki can handle any kind of temperatures. Space is really cold, you know."

            "I know, but I was worried about her," Sasami said.

            "Oh, she'll be fine," Tenchi said. "I know what she's like. She can scrounge a carrot from anywhere."

            "Yes, that cabbit is very resourceful," Ayeka said. "She can manage."

            "Tell you what," Aki said. "I'll go and look for her."

            Aki stood up and went for the exit, while the others sat on the ground. Tenchi looked around.

            "What's Mihoshi up to?" he wondered.

--------------------

            Mihoshi, as it so frequently happens, had stumbled her way into the laboratory part of Washu's workspace. There was metal all around, most of it various machines and contraptions. She wandered between them until she reached a desk. A couple of control panels were at either end, and in the middle was a recessed space. A small device was resting there. Mihoshi picked it up.

            It was a small rectangular plastic box, for want of a much better description. On one end were a variety of small multicoloured lights. A small pressure button was on the side, which Mihoshi pressed. This caused most of the top to fold open, hinged at the end. Once it was open the lights inside turned on. A graph screen flickered on in the middle of the base, and underneath was a message.

            TRICORDER ON, it read.

            "How strange," Mihoshi said. She gave it the benefit of the doubt, and pressed one of the buttons. Immediately every alarm in the place went off, and several screens appeared all around her, showing a picture of herself with a red circle and a bar overlapped on it.

            Washu came sprinting up to her, and snatched the device from her grasp.

            "What in Tenchi's name do you think you're doing?" Washu exclaimed.

            "I'm sorry, Miss Washu," Mihoshi apologised. "I was just seeing what that thing does."

            "Well, don't," Washu said, closing it and putting it back in its place. "It's a very delicate and powerful sensory device. It can detect pretty much anything within a really big radius. And I don't want you touching it!"

            "But what is it?" Mihoshi asked.

            "It's an idea taken from an Earthling television show," Washu said. "It's called a Tricorder. It's a handheld scanning device, and it's really good, if I say so myself. I think it's one of the best... Why am I telling you this? Get out!"

--------------------

            "What do you think Mihoshi's broken this time?" Ryoko asked.

            "I don't think she's actually broken anything," Tenchi said. "She just got into the wrong place."

            "Figures."

            Aki came back in at this point, sweating heavily. He slowly made his way over to the others, before slumping down on the grass, panting hard.

            "You been chasing bits of light again?" Tenchi asked.

            Aki shook his head, sweat droplets shaking off him. "No," he gasped. "It's hot."

            "No kidding," Ryoko said.

            "I made it all the way to the kitchen door," Aki said. "The heat was incredible. I tried cooling myself under the tap, but steam came out. The thermometer had melted."

            "Really," Ayeka said.

            "Yes, really," Aki replied, pulling something out of his pocket. It was the thermometer, badly warped and twisted. Everyone gaped at it.

            "Hey, will Ryo-Ohki be alright if it's this hot outside?" Tenchi asked.

            "I hope so," Ryoko replied.

--------------------

            When it gets hot, it really gets hot.

--------------------

            They eventually came out of the lab. It had cooled down somewhat from before, as it was now early evening. Sasami went to prepare dinner, while the others went into the main room.

            "Myah!" Ryo-Ohki greeted. She hadn't been seen all day, but the fact that she had survived the heat wasn't why everyone was so surprised.

            Ryo-Ohki was perched on a DragonBall.

            Tenchi quickly looked over to the shelf where the others were, and counted three. He looked back at Ryo-Ohki and saw another one. Ryo-Ohki had the seven-star DragonBall.

            "Ryo-Ohki, how d'ya get that?" Ryoko asked.

            Ryo-Ohki started to explain. Unfortunately no one understood what she was saying, except for Ryoko and Washu. Ryoko translated.

            "She says she was in the field this morning, just after Tenchi had left. She was eating a carrot when the DragonBall appeared in front of her. She touched it, and brought it back home."

            "That's amazing, Ryo-Ohki!" Tenchi praised. "The fields are really far away, especially for you. You mean to say you brought the Ball back all by yourself?"

            "Just for you," Washu said. "Ryoko missed that bit out."

            "I was just about to say that, mom," Ryoko growled.

            "Well, I'm very proud of you, Ryo-Ohki," Tenchi said, picking her up and cuddling her. "I can't believe you did that just for me."

            "Myah!"

            Sasami came in. "What happened?" she asked.

            "Ryo-Ohki got the fourth DragonBall," Ayeka replied.

            "Oh, you did? Well done, Ryo-Ohki!" Sasami praised.

            "Yeah, nice one, Ryo-chan," Aki said, giving her a little stroke as he passed Tenchi. He went to examine the ball.

            "Which one is it?" Mihoshi asked.

            "I don't know," Aki replied, turning the ball round in his hands. "I can't find the, ah, there it is. Hey, Ten? What is seven round circles, each one round one of the stars?"

            "I don't know," Tenchi replied. "I haven't a clue."

            "Hey, maybe it's a picture of the DragonBalls," Mihoshi said. "There are seven of them."

            "Ah, that's right!" Tenchi exclaimed. "The DragonBalls are only on the Earth. This must be the Earth DragonBall."

            "Yes, that sounds about right," Washu remarked. There are only three other elements, and none of them fit the seven circles thing at all."

            "Hey, maybe this was the DragonBall you detected this morning," Mihoshi said. "But when Ryo-Ohki touched it, it stopped being detected."

            "You know, I think it was," Tenchi said.

--------------------

            Indeed it was. The Ball joined the other three on the shelf. It was quite an impressive collection so far. Just three more DragonBalls were needed, then the magical dragon Shenron could be summoned and Tenchi could have his powers returned to him.

--------------------

            The heat wave that day was not completely due to the weather. While it may get hot in Japan, it doesn't get near hot enough to melt glass. In fact, it was Washu's fault. She had had an upset with her latest experiment, and it ended up altering the thermal conductivity of different patches of space in different ways. This led to the end result that it became extremely hot in some places, and cooler in others. The kitchen, where the thermometer had been, and where Aki had walked around earlier, was extremely hot, while in other areas, like the main room, the temperature was much lower. Luckily, nothing else was affected by the heat or cold except the thermometer, and the effects dissipated before anyone noticed. Washu was safe.

==============================

In the next episode of Supplement DB:

            Everyone relaxes outside. It may not sound like much, but Tenchi and Sasami do something special together, and the evil wizard that put the spells on Tenchi gets a mention. There's everything to play for in "The Phantom Menaces". Any resemblance of these menaces to Gollum from "Lord of the Rings" is purely coincidental. Indeed it is. Yes.


	5. The Phantom Menaces

Previously on Supplement DB:

            After a hot day, another DragonBall has been added to the collection. Now four of the seven have been collected. But for some reason, no-one has wondered what will happen when all of them are together. According to the note there will be something to say to release Shenron, but what? That hasn't been mentioned yet.

==============================

            Supplement DB, Part V – The Phantom Menaces

==============================

            Tenchi, Aki and the girls were outside the next day. It was a cooler day, which meant it was a very pleasant temperature to be in. Everyone was enjoying themselves. Sasami and Ryo-Ohki were running around playing, Mihoshi and Washu were relaxing on deckchairs, Ryoko and Ayeka were actually getting along nicely. Maybe it was something in the air, or the food, but they weren't fighting. Maybe it was because it was just a perfect day, and they didn't want to waste it by fighting. Or maybe it was because of what Tenchi and Aki were doing nearby.

            The two brothers were sat upright, legs crossed and hands resting on their knees. They were meditating. It was an old habit of Aki's that he had just restarted for no particular reason, and Tenchi thought it would be nice. So they sat there, focussing themselves and increasing their strength. It was always good to have a lot of strength.

            Ryo-Ohki jumped onto Tenchi's head and lay down, planning to go to sleep. Sasami came running up, whispering to the cabbit to get off. Tenchi didn't notice. He was too deep in concentration to notice. He was busy exploring the natural energy around him, sensing its every fold and raise.

            Sasami sat down next to Tenchi. She assumed his position and tried to meditate, but gave up after a few seconds. She just wasn't disciplined enough. She decided to ask Tenchi for help.

            "Tenchi?" she asked. "Can you teach me how to meditate? I want to learn what you have, but I can't. Can you teach me?"

            Tenchi opened his eyes. He blinked a few times and looked at Sasami.

            "Yes, Sasami?" he asked.

            "Oh, sorry if I interrupted anything," Sasami said. "I was just wondering if you could teach me how to become a Super Saiyan."

            Tenchi chuckled slightly. "Sasami, I don't think you should be thinking about becoming a Super Saiyan. Different people have different capabilities. Aki and I just happen to have more of them."

            "So you mean you won't teach me?" Sasami said disappointed.

            "No, that's not it," Tenchi replied. "I'm just saying that you shouldn't be wanting to become a Super Saiyan. It takes a very special person to become even a regular Saiyan."

            "Do you think I could be one?" Sasami asked hopefully.

            "I don't know," Tenchi replied after a while. "Maybe, maybe not. It all depends on your inner strength, and I can sense you have quite a bit of hidden powers, Sasami."

            "Really? So, will you teach me?"

            "Sure. But the first thing to do is to teach you how to control your energy, before you can fly or anything else. Controlling your energy is vital."

            "What do I do?"

            Tenchi resumed his stance. "Sit like this," he said. "Now, hold your hands in front of you like this." He demonstrated, bringing his hands loosely together, as if holding an invisible object about the size of a DragonBall. "Now is the important bit. You must become absolutely calm. When you do, you should be able to feel a warmth inside yourself. Then try to move this warmth to between your hands. Try and keep it in one place. It's something I call Zero-Point Energy. Just try to sense it first, and then later you can try moving it. Here, watch me. I'll do it as slowly as I can."

            Tenchi brought his hands together like before and concentrated. A white glow appeared on the palms of his hands. The glow faded, and as it did, a tiny dot of white light appeared between his hands. He looked at Sasami.

            "This is Zero-Point Energy," he explained. "This is what you should be aiming to do. But don't worry if you can't get it soon. It normally takes a few months to manage this, if a person really works at it, and knows what they're doing. Remember, the key is calmness."

            Aki opened his eyes. He was finished.

            "You're awake, I see," Tenchi said. "Here, come over here."

            He took him over to a tree, away from Sasami. She was trying to make herself calm.

            "So what's Sasami doing?" Aki asked.

            "I'm going to teach her how to fly and everything," Tenchi replied. "She's trying Zero-Point Energy at the moment."

            "Zero-Point? What's that?"

            "Maybe you call it something else. It's this." Tenchi did it again, only much faster. It took just under half a second.

            "You mean the Spirit Focus," Aki said.

            "Well, whatever you call it, she's trying it at the moment," Tenchi replied.

            He was about to say something else, but he stopped himself. He waved a hand to his right.

            "What're you doing?" Aki asked.

            Tenchi paused, as if listening to something. He shook his head. "Nothing. I just thought something was there, but there isn't."

            They walked back to where Ryoko and Ayeka were, as they didn't want to disturb Sasami.

            Tenchi stopped halfway across the garden and spun quickly, grabbing something behind him. The something appeared.

            It was pale green-brown, about the size of a child. It was some sort of monster, bald and with no distinguishing features or clothing. It had nothing to cover up.

            "What are you?" Tenchi demanded. "Why are you here?"

            "Go back," the little monster said.

            "What?"

            "Go back to the beginning," it said. It struggled free of Tenchi's grip and hopped away. "We don't need you any more," it said. "Go away. Go away and never come back."

            Aki had walked up to Tenchi, transformed into his Super Saiyan form.

            "Who's 'we'?" he asked.

            "We work for the master," the monster said. "We've come to make you go away."

            The monster vanished and reappeared behind Tenchi. It threw a powerful punch into his back, sending him hurtling forwards. He regained his control and landed on his feet, now also a Super Saiyan.

            "You just messed with the wrong people," Aki said coldly. He moved like lightning, hitting the monster directly in the face. It staggered back and disappeared. Aki was suddenly hit in the face by something he couldn't see. He yelled and clutched at his face.

            Tenchi flew to Aki, catching him as he fell backwards.

            "Tenchi, what are those things?" Ayeka asked.

            "Ayeka, set up your forcefield. Don't let those things near you," Tenchi ordered. Ayeka didn't object. Tenchi moved quickly to where Mihoshi was sunbathing. Washu was sitting next to her, reading a book.

            "Washu, set up a barrier for you two now," Tenchi ordered.

            "But why?" Washu asked.

            "Just do it. It's vital. Let nothing in."

            Tenchi moved to Sasami. She had stopped meditating and was standing up, watching Aki get up.

            "Sasami, go to Ayeka now. Get under her forcefield."

            "Tenchi, behind you!" Sasami shouted.

            Tenchi turned round, but nothing was there. He was promptly proven wrong when something hit his stomach.

            "Sasami, go," Tenchi gasped as he folded over.

            Aki appeared behind Sasami and grabbed her. He flew her over to Ayeka, who lowered her forcefield just enough to let Sasami in.

            "Hey, I can fight," Ryoko protested. "Why do I have to stay here?"

            "Can you sense these things at all?" Aki asked.

            Ryoko slowly shook her head.

            "I can hardly do so," Aki replied. "What makes you think you'll do any good? You'd just be a target. Besides, no offence, but you're just not as str..."

            Aki was thrown back, and bounced off the forcefield, landing on the ground next to it.

            Tenchi got up and powered himself to Hyper Saiyan. The aura around him threw back three vague shapes, only visible for a second as they came near him. Tenchi flew over to Aki and helped him up. Aki also powered up to a Hyper Saiyan.

            "Stop hiding," Tenchi called. "You're no match against two Ascended Super Saiyans."

            The garden was suddenly filled with little green-brown monsters, perhaps twenty in all. They were all looking at the two brothers, some muttering to themselves or each other in their strange tone.

            "Oh dear," Tenchi said.

            "That being an understatement," Aki replied.

            "Let's go."

            They flew forwards, forming energy attacks in their hands. Tenchi threw his at a small group of three to his left, while Aki swept his round in an arc, hoping to get at least five around him.

            Both their attacks missed. The monsters were too fast, and moved out of the way.

            "Blades," Tenchi said, and Aki agreed. They both formed an energy blade in their hand, much like Ryoko's technique. They began to slash at their enemies.

            A couple of them fell to the floor, each sliced in half. Ryoko quickly blocked Sasami's view of them with her hand.

            Tenchi threw his blade at another monster, slicing a hole through its head. He started to power up his aura, while Aki continued to slash.

            Tenchi gave a powerful burst of energy to his aura, making it expand outwards and engulfing several of the nearer monsters, before collapsing back in to its normal size. He swept his foot across the ground, leaving a glowing beam. He kicked the beam towards another of the creatures, slicing it through. Tenchi formed another energy blade and continued to cut.

            Aki regressed his sword and formed a flat disc with it. He threw it at a creature, decapitating it and another one behind it, before swinging it round towards Tenchi.

            Tenchi caught the Destructo-Disc and reformed it into a small ball. He thrust it forwards and split it into several beams, each directed towards a monster. Most of them were hit, and collapsed.

            Only three were left now. Because they now had room to move, they disappeared. The two Saiyans powered up their auras and knocked another monster each. They rebounded and landed on the ground. The Super Saiyans blasted them. Now only the original one was left.

            "Go back," it said, cowering away from them. "Go back to the beginning."

            Aki leapt forwards and cast an energy flame at it. Its head burned off, and the body collapsed.

            "Nice one, Tenchi," Tenchi said, not without sarcasm. "Now there's nothing left we can get information from."

            "So? It's probably that wizard anyway. He found out about you not being dead and sent these things to kill you."

            "You're probably right. Still, it would have been nice to find out from one of them, wouldn't it?"

            "Forget about it. Let's clean up."

            They each levitated some of the bodies into the air and clumped them together. Tenchi formed a Masenko Blast and destroyed them. Aki shot an energy flame at the rest, destroying those. They powered down.

--------------------

            "Yeah, they probably were sent by the wizard who put a spell on me," Tenchi said.

            The others had grouped together, concerned about the two brothers. They were fine, though. All that was hurt was some of the garden.

            Ryoko walked up to Aki, summoning her energy sword. She held it to his neck, frowning at him, ready to slice his head off.

            "Um, Ryoko?" Aki said hesitantly. "What're you doing?"

            "You tried to kill Tenchi," Ryoko said coldly, glaring at the clone.

            "I did?" Aki was surprised.

            "You did?" So was Tenchi.

            "You threw your energy disc at him, remember?" Ryoko said. "You got a couple of those monsters, but then made it go towards Tenchi. If he hadn't caught it, he would be dead."

            "Ryoko?" Tenchi said. "Aki didn't try to kill me for the very reason that I did catch his Destructo-Disc."

            "My Disc is unstoppable unless I let someone catch it," Aki said, his voice wavering due to the energy sword heating his throat. "I was talking with Tenchi telepathically. I told him he could catch it and use it to our advantage. And he did, remember?"

            "Ryoko, let go of him," Tenchi said.

            Ryoko removed her sword and dissipated it.

            "Tenchi, are you sure?" she asked.

            "Very sure, Ryoko," Tenchi replied. "Aki doesn't want to kill me. He's changed. I should think you'd have noticed that over the past few months."

            "Ryoko, please stop fighting," Sasami said, grabbing her arm. "Aki's on our side now."

            "And the wizard is on the other side," Washu said. "You really need to get those DragonBalls grouped, Tenchi. You need to become God again as soon as possible."

            "Yes," Ayeka agreed. "This wizard is probably going to keep sending us things to kill you, until one of you is dead."

            "Let's just hope it's him," Tenchi replied. "For reality's sake."

--------------------

            No rest for Tenchi. Another DragonBall had just appeared, with an existence of about an hour. Tenchi instantly translocated to the top of a tall mountain, where he found the one-star DragonBall, resting quite nicely in a snowdrift. He brought it back and added it to the collection. It was the Wind DragonBall, as the single star had lines coming out of it on one side, to represent the wind.

            He had just sat down after retrieving the Ball, when the Dragon Radar started beeping. The sixth ball had appeared. 

            "Go away," Tenchi moaned. "I've just got back. Gimme a break."

            The beeping continued relentlessly. Tenchi reached over and picked up the Radar, and then hurriedly stood up and used the instant translocation technique, as the newly appeared Ball would disappear in twelve seconds.

            He reappeared five inches above molten lava. He quickly flew up to escape at least some of the heat, and raised a bubble of cool air around him.

            Five seconds.

            He looked around anxiously for the DragonBall. It was somewhere in this volcano.

            Four seconds.

            Still looking. He sincerely hoped it wasn't beneath the lava. He had no doubt it could survive, but he wouldn't be able to get to it in time.

            Three seconds.

            Tenchi moved. A glint of light caught his eye.

            Two seconds.

            It was the DragonBall. Tenchi quickly rushed down to grab it.

            One second.

            Tenchi reached out and grabbed it.

            But he didn't. His hand passed straight through the space the DragonBall had been. The Ball faded and continued on its journey through the dimensions.

            Tenchi couldn't believe he had missed it. He was only a fraction of a second too late.

--------------------

            Tenchi flew back home, annoyed that he hadn't retrieved the Ball. He arrived home and told everyone the bad news. They were upset and sorry about it, but none more so than Tenchi. Now he knew he wasn't going to become God again for at least eight months.

            C'est la vie, apparently.

--------------------

            Tenchi was sitting on the sofa, thoroughly annoyed. Mihoshi, Aki and Ayeka were with him, all quiet. They were all thinking of the implications. There was now a whole eight months when Tenchi would be quite vulnerable to the wizard's attacks. There would doubtless be some more threats to appear between now and then.

            "Cheer up, Tenchi," Mihoshi said brightly. "You weren't this angry before, when you thought you'd missed the other DragonBall, but it turned out Ryo-Ohki had it."

            "But it was hot," Tenchi said. "My brain must have been fried. Becoming God again is the most important thing to me right now, and now I can't do that for ages. I can't believe I missed it, by a whole second."

            "Look, just cheer up," Ayeka said. "What's happened just is. Don't be annoyed by something you can't change."

            "It's not just that, Ayeka," Tenchi replied. "I feel so helpless now. Without my fourth form evolution, I feel... small. Like I can't do anything."

            Aki stood up and walked over to Tenchi, before hitting him on the head. The others gasped, as Tenchi slowly keeled over, his head landing in Ayeka's lap. Tenchi sat back up and looked at him, a completely confused look on his face.

            "What was that for?" he asked.

            Aki sighed and sat down on the table in front of him. "Tenchi, who are you?" he asked.

            "What kind of question is that?" Mihoshi asked.

            "I'm Tenchi," he said. "What do you mean?"

            Aki sighed again. "All those years ago, when you came up with your Masked Man stuff. The whole world knew you."

            "Tokemi came up with that," Tenchi said.

            "Actually, I did," Washu said, walking in from her lab. She sat down on the other sofa and sank slowly into the cushions. "I created those rings. Surely you don't think Tokemi made them?"

            "Well..."

            "I also made those nanobots she injected you with," Washu continued. Actually, those nanobots didn't exist any more, because they were destroyed during Tenchi's first evolution.

            "Can we?" Aki said. "Tenchi, everyone knew you. You were, and still are the strongest man on the planet, even back when you were twelve."

            "Point?" Tenchi asked.

            "And later, some months ago, when you fought me. You somehow managed to evolve to that robot form and kill me."

            "You killed yourself, remember?" Tenchi said. "I don't want to be responsible for any more deaths. Just keep that clear."

            "Okay, so I killed myself," Aki said. "Then later, you fought K'oko. Against every odd you evolved beyond that to your bionetic form. Then you were the most powerful being in existence, apart from K'oko himself, and the goddesses."

            "So?" Mihoshi asked.

            "So, Tenchi's being a complete baka," Aki said. "He's complaining for absolutely no reason. He is without a doubt the strongest being in at least this galaxy, even now. Where's the down side in being stronger than anything that wizard can throw at you?"

            "But he could put another spell on me," Tenchi said.

            "Could, should, would," Aki said. "Look, if anything, he'll be going after us lot next. Since we saved you from Sel, that wizard is probably going to try and get rid of us lot before he takes care of you. And I don't plan on being anyone's breakfast."

            "Yes, because you're dead," Tenchi said. "He can't do anything to affect you."

            "Kami, Tenchi!" Aki exclaimed. "Just give it a rest! Do you really think any of us care that you're not God any more? Even at all? Look, maybe this'll do you some good. It'll show you not to rely too much on God, and instead you should trust in your friends."

            "Tenchi, he's right," Ayeka said. "We all love you, and I know we shall all defend and protect you with every bit of energy we have."

            "Um, except me," Washu said. They all looked at her. "Hey, I have an obligation to the Multiverse not to get killed. Remember, I'm one of the Trinity? Without me, then no life, then nothing ever?"

            "You've got a point," Tenchi said. "If you die, that instantly cancels everything."

            "Hey, the rest of us will protect you as much as we can," Mihoshi said.

            "Hear that?" Aki asked. "You know you're far stronger than all of them, even now. Are you just going to lie down and play helpless puppy? That's pathetic. No, it's worse. It's just sad."

            "Maybe you're right," Tenchi said slowly.

            Aki rolled his eyes. "Washu's always right, and she'll tell you I'm right, right?"

            Washu nodded. "Just snap out of it. It's very unattractive, this moping. Try to remember being the strong Tenchi you once were, facing danger with no concern for your safety. You were better then."

            Tenchi blinked, as if suddenly becoming aware of his surroundings. "You know what? You're right," he said. "I don't know why I was acting like that. Sorry. So I missed one DragonBall. So what? It'll come back, and I fully intend to be there to pick it up."

            "There you are, Tenchi," Aki said.

            "Welcome back, Tenchi," Ayeka said, hugging him and resting her head on his shoulder.

            "Thanks, Aki," Tenchi said.

            Aki just stood up, rolling his eyes, and went to the kitchen, leaving Tenchi with three beautiful women.

==============================

In the next episode of Supplement DB:

            Time shares come back, and a DragonBall comes and goes. At the door appears a blast from the past, or is that future? It's the first episode dealing with the complexities of time, "God II". Tenchi learns something terrible, which would destroy his destiny, and this fabled wizard is finally found. Now from this point on things get a little bit confusing.


	6. God II

Previously on Supplement DB:

            A couple of dozen little demon creatures have appeared, looking nothing like Gollum from "Lord of the Rings". Ahem. Tenchi and Aki defeated them, and Tenchi collected another DragonBall. Unfortunately he missed one, and now he is destined to wait another eight months until it comes back. When you think about it, life sucks.

==============================

            Supplement DB, Part VI – God II

==============================

            "Tenchi, I know that since you fought K'oko, you haven't done anything like a schedule for us, have you?"

            "What do you mean?"

            "Well, what I mean," said Ryoko, "is that you haven't given anyone any days that we can be with you."

            "Oh, you mean the time sharing thing?" Tenchi caught on. "Why, do you want me to start that again?"

            "Well, yes," Ryoko said. "I had some really good things we could do, but Aki ruined my only day with you so far."

            "Come on, surely you like Aki now?" Tenchi said. "He's been here two and a half months, despite him saying he was going to leave ages ago, and he's not shown any signs of turning evil again."

            "You know, he's just leeching off us," Ryoko said.

            "No, he's leeching off me," Tenchi replied. "And no more than the rest of you are."

            "Anyway," Ryoko said, wanting to get back to the subject, "I just want to know that I can have a full day with you, without the others to interfere. I really had some special things planned."

            "Well, I could ask the others," Tenchi said. "If they don't mind, or if they want to start the time sharing thing again, I will do."

            "Thanks, Tenchi," Ryoko said, appearing behind him and wrapping her arms around his neck. She nuzzled up next to his cheek, and Tenchi returned the action.

--------------------

            Tenchi had brought the issue up over dinner. The others didn't mind, and Ayeka did say that she was actually going to request that soon anyway.

            "So, great!" Tenchi said. "We'll start this weekly thing again."

            "Can I know what's going on?" Aki requested.

            "I guess," Tenchi smiled. "We're going to do a random draw. Each of these lovely girls will be given a random day, and that's when they spend the day with me by themselves."

            "And everyone's alright with this?" Aki asked.

            "They were the week you showed up before," Tenchi replied.

            "Oh. Did I ruin anyone's day?"

            "Mine," Ryoko said.

            "Ah. Sorry. Can I make it up to you?"

            "Just don't try and kill Tenchi on my day again, okay?" Ryoko said.

            "You got it."

--------------------

            So they did a draw. It was the same routine, being names in a salad bowl. Having happened only once before, it can hardly be called a routine, but it was going to happen a lot more times after this, so it was a start of one.

            Sasami got Monday.

            Ryoko got Tuesday.

            Washu got Wednesday.

            Mihoshi got Thursday.

            Ayeka got Friday.

            As that day was a Saturday, Tenchi had the weekend to himself, before the week would begin. As before, the usual rules stood. No provoking people into fights, or the provoker lost their day. No switching of days. And changeover was at nine in the morning.

            Aki just watched this strange lottery with interest and bemusement. Why they agreed to do this instead of any other way was beyond him.

--------------------

            "Hey, Tenchi?" Aki asked. They were changing to go to bed.

            "Yes?"

            "Why do you do that thing with the days? Why don't you just choose one of the girls?"

            Tenchi took his shirt off and threw it into a basket.

            "Because I love them all," he replied. "Besides, this way is good enough, isn't it?"

            "Yes, but do you love one of them more than the others?" Aki asked.

            "Well, I do know my true choice," Tenchi said.

            "What?"

            "When I became God, I suddenly realised my subconscious choice. Which of the girls I most want to be with."

            "Have you told them?"

            "Soon. Someday." Tenchi finished undressing and climbed into bed. "Why all the interest, anyway? Is someone lonely at night?"

            "No," Aki said rather too quickly, turning away to hide his embarrassment. "I was just wondering why you continued to call them all your girlfriends if you knew which one you truly desired."

            "We're all not ready," Tenchi replied.

            "So who is it, anyway?" Aki asked, as he too got into bed. "Who's the lucky girl?"

            "I can't answer that," Tenchi said.

            "What? Why not?"

            "It implies I've chosen only one girl," Tenchi said, turning the light off.

            "You mean you truly desire more than one of them?" Aki asked, stunned.

            "All of them," Tenchi said solemnly. He laughed. "Of course not all of them. Anyway, good night, Aki."

--------------------

            Tenchi was rudely awoken the next morning by his alarm clock. The incessant beeping jerked him prematurely from his dream, and made him quite angry. He went through the usual routine of throwing a shoe over at his alarm clock, and listening contentedly to the sound of collision, before going back to sleep.

            Only the alarm clock didn't stop. Tenchi growled and threw the other shoe. Still no end. He got up and drifted to his desk.

            His alarm clock was reading a time of 5:46 am. It was set to go off around half seven.

            Tenchi followed the beeping across his desk to the Dragon Radar. He turned on the light, blinked as it came on, and eventually made out the reading.

            The last DragonBall had appeared. It had about an hour and a half left to go, so Tenchi wasn't in much rush. He pulled on some clothes and returned to his Radar.

            The reading was gone. No more DragonBall. Tenchi was sure it said at least an hour. He shrugged it off, as he was still tired, undressed and crawled back to sleep.

--------------------

            Aki woke up early that day, but not due to Tenchi or his rummaging around for clothes about six o'clock that morning. He dressed and saw that Tenchi was still asleep. He was about to wake him up, but then remembered.

            "He's a Super Saiyan 3," Aki whispered to himself. "I don't know what kind of powers he has. He can probably sense everything in this room right now. Still, if he can, he should be able to stop me from dropping this shoe on him."

            He picked up one of Tenchi's shoes, inexplicably already on his desk, and held it over Tenchi's face.

            He dropped it. It hit Tenchi's face, causing him to jerk awake and yell out in pain.

            "Erk." Aki stepped away and came up with a story.

            "Hey, sorry about that, Ten," Aki said, laughing nervously. He rubbed the back of his head. "I was just throwing them back over to your bed, but I guess I really am a strong thrower."

            Tenchi knew what Aki had done. Aki was worried that he was going to start yelling at him, or something.

            "Okay then," Tenchi said, massaging the pain out of his nose. "What time is it?"

            "You're not mad? I mean, it's about seven," Aki said.

            "I guess I'll get up then," Tenchi sighed. He got out of bed and went to get some clothes.

            "Hey, Ten? What were your shoes doing over on your desk this morning? The alarm clock hasn't gone off yet."

            "Oh, that was real? I thought it was a dream." Tenchi started hopping around the room, pulling his pants on. "The Radar started beeping, but it disappeared before I managed to get to it."

            "Oh, another fast one?" Aki asked.

            "No. I'm sure it said at least an hour, but it just disappeared, just before I was going to jump there."

            "Well, maybe someone or something touched it," Aki said. "You know, like Ryo-Ohki did with the other one?"

            "I hope so. Try looking for it. Sense the other Balls, to see what to look for," Tenchi said, pulling on his shirt. "I'm too tired at the moment."

            Aki looked, trying to sense the five Balls downstairs.

            "Tenchi, I can't sense our Balls," Aki said. "I don't think they have an energy signature."

            "Shoot," Tenchi said. "So the last Ball is out there somewhere, probably being a paperweight as we speak. And we can't find it."

            "Yes, darn," Aki agreed.

--------------------

            It was about lunchtime. Tenchi had told the others about the missing DragonBall, and they had offered sympathetic words. One of the best ideas was to place a message around the world, asking if anyone had seen a DragonBall. Yes, it was probably a futile attempt, but it was the best they could think of. The DragonBalls gave off no distinguishing signals at all, so Washu couldn't use any of her machines, like her Tricorder, to find it.

            As it was Sunday, Tenchi could do what he wanted. He just so happened to spend it with Sasami. He was continuing to train her. She had advanced remarkably well over the past week since she had started meditating. She was already able to focus her energy, and had formed her first energy ball about ten minutes ago. Later on, Tenchi was going to teach her how to fly. Flying was the best was to improve energy control, as the better a person flew, the better they could control their energy. Plus it was also good fun.

            There was a knock at the door. Mihoshi went to answer it, and froze.

            "May I come in?" Tenchi asked.

--------------------

            The new Tenchi was now sitting in the main room, graciously sipping a drink Sasami had made for him. The first Tenchi and his clone, the second Tenchi, were sitting opposite him.

            "That's great, Sasami," the new Tenchi said. "Just as I remember. Thanks."

            "So why are you here, um..." Aki asked.

            "Oh, call me Neo," the new Tenchi said. "It's a nightmare, I know. Coming up with different names for each different Tenchi you meet. The current Tenchi, Aki, Neo, that's me, Future Tenchi and so on."

            "Future Tenchi?" Tenchi asked.

            "Oh, sorry," Neo said. "Did I say that? I didn't mean to."

            "But what do you mean?" Tenchi asked.

            "Well, if you must know, you're going to meet Future Tenchi some time from now. Hey, look, instead of asking questions, how's about I just tell you everything?"

            Tenchi and Aki just nodded. The girls were also there, but they were staying out of this conversation. Three identical Tenchi's was just too much to handle.

            "Right," Neo started. "I'm Tenchi Neo Masaki. I am a future version of you. I came back to get this for you." Neo reached inside the cloak he was wearing and pulled out a DragonBall. "This is the five-star DragonBall. It's the Light Ball, as the image inside it shows a big star, made by the five small ones. But anyway, this is for you." He handed it over to Tenchi. Tenchi took it, and put it down.

            "That DragonBall appeared this morning," Neo continued. "It's the one you were going to get this morning, but it disappeared before you could. That's because I got it. This Ball was buried under three miles of solid stone, so you wouldn't have been able to get it anyway, not in time at least. So I did.

            "I'm from the future. I got all the DragonBalls together and wished back my God form. Shenron's a really nice dragon, but he is rather impatient. Anyway, I came back to help you, as I was in your position when I was you. I'm here to warn you about the future, and to give you some help. But before you start going on about paradoxes and causality loops, remember that all this has already happened anyway."

            "Are you going to help us destroy this wizard then?" Aki asked.

            "Nope," Neo replied. "But I can tell you where he is, so you can go face him. He's on the planet Auze. Washu can find it."

            "So why aren't you going to help us?" Tenchi asked.

            "Actually, I've got something else to do here," Neo replied. "You'll find out soon enough."

            "But what's going to happen?" Aki asked.

            "Asking about your future, Aki?" Neo asked. "Come now. Don't you like a surprise?"

            "No."

            "Fair enough. You're going to go to Auze soon. You'll meet the wizard, who'll start messing around with things. Things I'm here to try and clean up."

            "Like what?" Tenchi asked.

            "Let's just say it involves a tear in time. I'm here to help sew it up again."

            "Help with who?"

            "Me and myself. Other versions of me, from far into my future. You'll meet them soon enough. The next one you're going to meet you'll know him as Future Tenchi. Oh, when you get into serious danger, you'll know when I mean, just run as fast as you can, Tenchi. Distract the danger from your girlfriends, and save them. Just remember that you'll survive, but not if you don't floor it."

            "This is all too much to handle," Tenchi sagged back.

            "Oh, it was," Neo replied. He took another sip to wet his throat. "Aah. This is incredible, Sasami. I haven't tasted this for ages."

            "What do you mean?" Sasami asked.

            "Does anything happen to her?" Ayeka asked.

            "Well, it's not as though I can't say, but I'm only going to tell Tenchi," Neo said. "He knows pretty much everything I do, so he'll know what to do with it."

            Neo leaned towards Tenchi. "Shall we go for a walk?" he asked.

            Tenchi nodded slowly.

--------------------

            They went for a walk. Neo just looked around at the scenery for ages, admiring and being astonished by everything he saw. Tenchi just let him walk, feeling Neo would talk to him when he was ready.

            "It's incredible, Tenchi," Neo said. "You really should be proud to live here. I haven't seen a sight like this for at least a year."

            There was a pause, where Tenchi would have asked what he meant, but that was taken for granted.

            "When you come back here, after messing around with the wizard, you're going to see me and the other two Tenchi's. We're all going to be trying to contain a temporal rip, in your front garden. We're going to fail, and the rip will widen and destroy everything around up to about a mile out. Your house will be destroyed, your family killed and your friends vaporised."

            Neo looked down, as Tenchi stopped, open-mouthed in disbelief.

            "I wouldn't lie to myself, you know that," Neo said. "That is what is going to happen. Only you will survive, because you can use instant translocation. The others are going to try desperately to get to you, and nearly reach you, but the tear engulfs them. Tenchi, you have an obligation to create the Universe. You can't let the tear touch you and obliterate you, no matter what. I know it's going to be hard, letting them go, but you must. Otherwise, everything will never have existed at all. You can't do that. You must save yourself, even if you can't save them."

            "They die?" Tenchi whispered. "They all die?"

            "I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but I must. You must be living in the near future from as soon as you come back. You have to use your foresight to sense when the rip's going to give, and get out of there before it does."

            Tenchi sagged down to his knees, the reality of the situation finally hitting him.

            "I know you're a good guy, Tenchi," Neo said, crouching down and hugging him gently. "I hate to give me bad news."

            A tear made its way from Tenchi's eye, down his cheek and dripped to the floor.

            "Just remember one thing," Neo said. "Don't tell the others anything, not even Washu or Aki. And don't tell them your true choice. You know what I mean. Just don't tell them. It'll just make it harder to leave them. Tenchi, there's nothing you'll be able to do. Trust me. It was hard on me, too, but I overcame it."

            Neo looked around.

            "All this area will be flattened," he said, as Tenchi produced another tear. "But some time after that, life will come again. Just about here, where you are, a seedling will grow. You'll nurture it, feed it and it will become a rose. What I'm trying to say is, don't let this knowledge stop you from doing what you have to do. You must collect the DragonBalls and regain your deity. It's the only way you could change anything."

            "Can't you just turn back time, and make all of this never happen?" Tenchi asked.

            "You know I can't," Neo replied. "I'm not that powerful. Two of me, maybe, and probably three, but not myself. This is rewinding the entire Multiverse we're talking about, not a cassette tape. It's just something you're going to have to face. Trust me, you'll get through it. I did."

            "So they all die?"

--------------------

            Washu was busy with her computer, trying to locate the planet Auze and specifically where the wizard was, when the two same people walked in. Sasami and the others ran up to Tenchi.

            "Tenchi, what did he tell you?" Ryoko asked.

            "What happens to us?" Ayeka asked.

            "Come now, you lot," Tenchi said, holding back his sorrow. "You know better than to ask your future. Washu, have you found the wizard yet?"

            "Not yet, Tenchi," Washu replied.

            "Hey, guys, want anything?" Aki offered.

            "Actually, I have nothing to do for a while, so could I stay here for a bit?" Neo asked.

            Everyone just looked at him, shocked at the prospect of having a third Tenchi around. It was as if the Masaki house was now a hotel, the number of people living there.

            "Don't worry," Neo said hurriedly as he saw their expressions. "I only need to stay one night."

            "But Aki only needed to stay for a few days," Ryoko said. "That was before he stayed here for a few months!"

            "Fine then," Neo said. "I'll go find a hotel or something. No, no, it's alright," he said as Tenchi started to protest. "Trust me. I'll just hang around somewhere else until I'm needed back here." He gave Tenchi a knowing nod, which Tenchi understood and received.

            "Okay, well, see you later, Tenchi," Tenchi called as Neo left. Neo paused ever so slightly, before carrying on across the bridge over the side of the lake towards town. He waved as he went.

            "Don't tell them what I told you," the voice penetrated Tenchi's mind. Neo was talking to him telepathically. "And don't tell them your true decision, either. You'll have plenty of time to grieve, so just hold it in for now."

--------------------

            Tenchi did so, as the night went on. He refused to let on what Neo had told him, and Washu edged closer to finding the wizard's location. Tenchi could use his instant translocation technique to take them there, so they were just waiting to go.

            The wait continued on to the next morning. Washu had worked throughout the night, despite Tenchi demanding that she get some rest. Then, at about ten that morning, the wizard was found.

==============================

In the next episode of Supplement DB:

            The journey through time and space begins. First to Auze, then back to Earth and through time, all the way back to meet a ten-ton carnivore with a taste for Tenchi! "Me, Myself and I" will feature all sorts of events and meetings not possible without time travel. They're off to see the wizard, the wicked wizard of Auze. Oh yes, and Tenchi gets eaten alive, but don't let that put you off.


	7. Me, Myself and I

Previously on Supplement DB:

            A future version of Tenchi came to the Masaki house, calling himself Neo. Neo told everyone a little about their future, and then later told Tenchi privately the shocking truth: everyone but him was going to die. Washu has finished searching for the wizard of Auze, and now Tenchi is taking them there.

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            Supplement DB, Part VII – Me, Myself and I

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            The air shook, and seven figures appeared in the dank metal room. Tenchi, Aki and the girls had all gone to the planet Auze in search of the wizard. Sasami, despite being told to stay behind, had grabbed hold of the jumping group, and so had appeared with them. Ryo-Ohki was there also, as transportation might be needed.

            They looked around. They were apparently in some high-tech facility, in one of the storage bays. The wizard was most likely in the control room, for whatever reason only he knew. They walked out of the bay and down the corridor to where the signs said there was a control room, not meeting resistance.

            "I would have thought there'd be more security," Aki noted.

            "Maybe he's just not expecting company," Ryoko said.

            "Just stay alert, everyone," Tenchi called.

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            Unknown to them, a silent alarm had been triggered, alerting the person in the control room.

            "So they've arrived," Neo said. "Good for them. Now we'll see who wins."

            The hidden security cameras were monitoring the progress of the group. They were now fairly close to the control room.

            "Well, here they come," Neo said. "I hope you're ready for this."

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            "Do you think this is it?" Mihoshi asked.

            "Well, the door kind of says 'Control Room', Mihoshi," Ryoko said. "That is where we're going."

            "I'm just saying, maybe the wizard isn't here," Mihoshi said.

            "No, he is here," Washu said. "My latest scans from a few minutes ago say he's in this room."

            "Let's go," Tenchi said. "Everyone, ready yourself. I don't know what this wizard is going to do, but just be careful."

            They burst in.

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            "Ah, hey, guys," Neo greeted.

            "Neo? What're you doing here?" Tenchi gasped. "Are you Neo?"

            "Yes, I am Neo," Neo replied. "Why am I here? I'm here to sort something out. Want to know why the security is off?"

            "What? Why?"

            "I turned it off. I knew you would come, so I decided to help you here. Unfortunately, the wizard seems to have gone."

            "Where to?" Ayeka asked.

            "Not where, but when," Neo replied. "He's back on Earth, seven and a bit years ago. I'm going to help you back there, but I can't come with you. I'm needed now on Earth."

            "But how did the wizard travel back in time?" Aki asked.

            "He used his magic," Neo replied. "I was confronting him just now, but he suddenly went just before you came in. Anyway, you need to go."

            Neo ascended to his God form, and raised his hand towards the group. "See you soon," he said, before sending them through time and space.

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            The room blurred and was replaced by a garden. To their side was a house, a large one with blue tiles. It was their house.

            "Hey, we're home!" Sasami exclaimed.

            "But not when we should be," Tenchi replied. "See that tree over there?" He pointed towards a half-dead tree with no leaves. "One of the first things I did when I came here was to cut down that tree. It's still there, so I must not have come here yet."

            "Someone's coming outside," Aki alerted.

            Everyone hurried behind the nearest bush, as a woman emerged from the house. She was a beautiful woman, just showing the signs of age. She was perhaps forty. She held up a parasol to shade her from the sun's glare.

            Tenchi knew instantly who she was. She was his mother.

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            Tenchi rose slowly from behind the bush he was crouched next to, despite the frantic signals from the others.

            "Mom?" Tenchi asked quietly.

            His mother looked at him, a questioning look on her face.

            "Tenchi!" Washu hissed at him. "She doesn't know who you are, remember? You came here after she died."

            Tenchi completely ignored her, instead staring at the woman in front of him.

            "Mommy?"

            His mother, Achika, smiled.

            "Tenchi," she replied warmly. She held her arms open for Tenchi to run up and hug her tightly. They stayed together for several moments, and then parted.

            "Tenchi dear, introduce me to your friends behind that bush," Achika said.

            "Huh?" Tenchi was taken aback. "Um, sure. Guys, come here, will you?"

            The group slowly stood up, unsure about what to do.

            "Mummy, this is Ayeka," Tenchi announced, gesturing towards Ayeka. Ayeka just bowed slightly and uncertainly. "She's grandpa's half-sister. That's her sister, Sasami." Sasami waved. "The others are Ryoko, Mihoshi and Washu. And the guy over there who looks like me is my clone. We call him Aki."

            "Um, hey," Aki said hesitantly.

            "I am very glad to meet you all," Achika said. "I knew you would come."

            "But how?" Washu asked.

            "Tenchi told me," Achika replied. "At least, your future self, Tenchi."

            There was a pause, as everyone tried to think of something to say. Achika won.

            "Tenchi, I'm so very proud of you," Achika said. "Not only do you have incredible power, but you also have very good friends. Even though I've only just met them, I love them all, and I am happy that you love them all too."

            "How do you...?" Tenchi started, but Achika shushed him.

            "I love you, Tenchi," she whispered. "I could not have hoped for a better son. You make me proud, every single day."

            "Mommy..." Tenchi started, but couldn't finish. He hugged his mother tightly, burying his face into her shoulder. "I missed you."

            "And I'm sorry I never got to know you, dear," Achika replied. "I know you'll make me proud, whoever you decide to marry."

            Tenchi didn't argue with this. He just continued the hug, trying hard to hold back the tears. But they just wouldn't disappear. Tenchi began to cry. The others just looked on tentatively.

            Eventually, Tenchi released his mother.

            "You have to go now, Tenchi," Achika said. "Don't worry. I will always be with you, no matter what."

            "Mummy, I don't want to," Tenchi sniffed. "I want to stay here and get to know you."

            "Darling, you know you can't," Achika smiled kindly.

            "Doesn't mean I can't try."

            Achika smiled again. "I love you, Tenchi, and I always will," she said. "Will you be alright, love?"

            "I don't know what's going to happen to me," Tenchi replied. "But the others..."

            "The others will be fine," his mother said gently. "I know I can't guarantee it, but I promise they will be. Just don't think about it. You have a mission to do, a very important one. Go and save the universe, Tenchi, like you always have done. Be brave. Go now."

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            There was a disturbance some distance away, and Tenchi appeared. This Tenchi was considerably older than Neo, the first of the future selves. He looked about thirty years old, but he could have been any age, given that he could control his appearance. He nodded to himself and started walking towards the Masaki house.

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            The group had left the house, and was now walking towards the forest nearby. Tenchi was guiding them towards the newest Tenchi, whom he had sensed when he arrived, but he didn't tell the others. Aki could also feel him, but didn't say anything either.

            Tenchi was finishing drying his eyes when Sasami pulled his arm. Tenchi looked down at the little princess.

            "Tenchi, who is it we're going to?" she asked.

            "What do you mean, Sasami-chan?"

            "There's a person in front of us," Sasami said. "Are we going to him? Why?"

            "Sasami, this man is the next future version of me," Tenchi replied. "He's going to tell us what to do next."

            "What do you mean, next future self?" Ryoko asked.

            "Exactly what it sounds like," Aki said.

            "He's an older version of Neo, from before," Mihoshi said. "Right?"

            "That's right, Mihoshi," Tenchi replied. "And I'm glad to see that your abilities are developing fast, Sasami. You can already sense other people's energy signals."

            "Well, I've been practising," Sasami blushed.

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            They met the next future Tenchi as they were walking through the forest. Not in a clearing, but between the trees.

            "Hey, you guys," the next Tenchi said. "Call me Future Tenchi. I guess the name could even stretch to Futen. Still, it's only a temporary name, isn't it?"

            Tenchi noticed the flicker in Futen's expression as he looked at his friends. Of course, to Futen, they had all died however long ago it was, but judging from his physical appearance, it had been a long time.

            "So what do we do now?" Tenchi asked.

            "You do nothing," Futen replied. "I send you back in time about sixty-five years ago."

            "Why then?" Ayeka asked.

            "That's when the wizard is now," Futen said. "Get ready to slice."

            Slicing time was what Tenchi liked to call time travel, so it would only be right that Futen called it that as well. Everyone stood in a huddle, touching each other, just in case.

            "See you earlier," Futen said, before sending them on their way. After they had gone, Futen proceeded to the Masaki house, to rendezvous with the temporal split.

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            The group appeared in a field. Obviously they had moved location as well as through time, because the trees would still have been there otherwise, despite being much younger. Two cows near them looked up, weren't startled by them and went back to eating grass.

            There was a town nearby. The group advanced.

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            They had appeared in the Thirties, as Futen had said. Around them new buildings were being constructed, which would have been knocked down and built over several times back in the future. It was mid-afternoon, so some people were around, but most of them were at work.

            "You know, what I'm wondering is why this wizard is going through so much trouble," Washu said. "It doesn't make any sense for him to be doing any of this."

            "Travelling through time, you mean," Aki replied. "I was thinking that too. I guess if he wants to kill Tenchi, he has to have a few screws missing."

            "Several people have tried to kill me in the past, you know," Tenchi replied. "Although I managed. I suppose he's just trying to throw us off. He wasn't really expecting us to follow him so far."

            "Tenchi, the wizard is here," Sasami said, tugging at his arm.

            "You're right, Sasami," Tenchi replied, sensing him too. "You really are developing your powers fast."

            "Hey, Tenchi, what about me?" Ryoko asked. "I already have lots of powers. Why don't you give me that much attention?"

            "Where do your powers come from, Ryoko?" Tenchi asked evenly.

            Ryoko hesitated, and then looked at the jewel on the inside of her wrist.

            "They're not really your powers, are they?" Tenchi asked. "They're Washu's, but they're only some of her deity powers."

            "Hey, everyone," Aki interrupted. "I hate to break this up, but the wizard is actually quite close by."

            "He's probably in disguise, so look out," Tenchi told the group.

            "I think he's actually in dhat guise," Aki replied, pointing to a man across the road. He looked like an elderly man, with a white beard stretching down to mid-chest level. His wrinkled face was even more so due to the frown of concentration upon his face. He wore what at first appeared to be normal clothing, but they were normal back in the future, when he left. He appeared to be looking for something.

            "Let's go," Tenchi said. "Be careful. Don't do anything until you have to. Remember, what you may do now could affect the future in untold ways."

            They crossed the road, as two young women passed the wizard. The wizard grabbed them and said something quietly. The two women each gasped something, as well as for breath, as the wizard was paralysing them.

            "Hey, let them go!" Tenchi shouted. He and the others started running towards the helpless women.

            The women collapsed to the ground, dead. Tenchi was the first to arrive, and knelt down and tried to see if there was anything he could do. He looked up at the wizard, who was laughing slightly.

            "Why did you kill them?" Tenchi demanded.

            "Why?" the wizard replied, a more high-pitched voice than would be expected of someone with his form. "Why do you think? Do you have any idea who these women are?"

            The others arrived. Ryoko was going to form an energy attack, but a restraining hand from Ayeka stopped her. If she did anything like that it could affect the future immeasurably.

            "Who are they?" Mihoshi asked.

            "They're you grandmothers, Masaki," the wizard said. "Now that they're dead, you won't exist."

            "Paradoxes don't work like that," Tenchi replied.

            "True. All the effects you've created will still happen, but you, as a person won't. And that makes all the difference."

            "Why?" Aki asked.

            "Do you remember about seven years ago? You created a huge energy beam that destroyed my planet."

            "I did?" Tenchi asked. Then he remembered. His fight with Sel. Forming the largest kameya-meya ever created, and shooting it at Sel from beneath him. The blast continued through space, smashing asteroids to atoms, before impacting something large enough to disperse its energy into. A planet.

            Tenchi sagged his head, thinking about what he had unwittingly done. Around the group, the onlookers had scattered. It was a combination of the fact that two people had just been killed, and the appearance of these strangers with the unusual hair colours.

            "That was my planet you destroyed, Masaki," the wizard said. "I was lucky. I was on a nearby planet when it happened. A huge blue burst of light shot through space and hit it. Over half of my planet was inside the blast area, and the rest of it collapsed and shattered when the moon was sucked in. You killed billions of my people, Masaki. I hope you can live with that, for as long as you have left, because as much as I try, I can't bring myself to believe that one person could possibly do so much damage. You." 

            "We don't need to take this," Ryoko said. "It's time to fight!"

            Ayeka stopped her again, more forcefully this time.

            "Ayeka, let go," Ryoko growled. "Don't you remember? This guy nearly killed Tenchi by bringing back that Sel!"

            "Wait until we know what Tenchi says," Ayeka said.

            "I've spent the last seven years coming to grips with the end of my race, and coming up with some way to get my revenge," the wizard said. "Revenge for every life you destroyed. And in all those years, I could only come up with one thing. Your demise. That's right. Even though your death will be little compensation for the annihilation of my home, it's the best and most fitting thing I can think of."

            "Shut up," Aki said coldly, resting his hand on Tenchi's shoulder. Tenchi was still staring at the ground.

            "It was supposed to be a humiliating experience," the wizard continued. "Stripped of your powers, and destroyed by your first and weakest enemy. But then you came along, clone, and you too, demon," he said, staring at Aki and Ryoko. "You two messed everything up. It's because of you two that you're all going to die. All this messing up time. Don't you think it has repercussions? Cause and effect. There's going to be some sort of collapse somewhere, and you're all going to get sucked up into it. You're the ones that are causing the most damage, you see. It's all your fault, Masaki, and your so-called friends. Wherever you go, you always manage to destroy everything. And now, with your fate in your own hands, you still manage to destroy it. Enjoy yourselves, everyone. You're already dead."

            The wizard stepped back and the air around him shimmered. It bent itself around him and stretched back out, revealing nothing but space. The wizard had jumped through time again.

            "Tenchi, he's gone!" Sasami said. "What are we going to do?"

            Tenchi was still in shock. He had killed billions of people with that attack, and he never knew. He began to wonder if he had killed anyone else similarly.

            "Tenchi, we need to go back," Washu said softly, shaking his shoulder.

            "That's right," a newcomer said. "You need to do a bit more slicing."

            Tenchi jerked his head up and turned around. He came face to face with an old man. The facial features had changed somewhat, and wrinkles had developed under his eyes and across his cheeks, but Tenchi recognised him. It wasn't just the slicing comment that gave him away.

            "You're the next Tenchi?" Tenchi asked.

            "That's right," the man said, nodding. "I'm from a lot further in your future than you would care to think about. Needless to say, I'm here to help you back to the past."

            "When are we going now?" Tenchi asked.

            "One hundred million years ago," the old man replied. "You're going to meet the dinosaurs. Remember what Neo said earlier, about being in trouble? That's about to become relevant."

            "And what should we call you?" Aki asked.

            "Mirai God should be fine," the old man said. "Mirai would also do."

            "Mirai, I killed billions of people," Tenchi whispered.

            "No you didn't. Rytel just heard differently. He was mistaken."

            "Rytel?"

            "That's the wizard. It's his name."

            "So I didn't destroy a planet?"

            "No. When you'll become God in the future, you'll go back in time and stop that kameya-meya just outside Earth's atmosphere. Anyway, ready to slice?"

            Tenchi nodded, thankful for this news. It was a great relief to know that there weren't an extra several billion people on his death list. The others moved towards him.

            "See you later," Mirai said, before him and everything around the time travellers warped into blackness, and was replaced by a jungle.

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            "Where are we?" Mihoshi asked, before tripping up over the nearest available root.

            "It appears to be a jungle," Ryoko said.

            "No kidding," Ayeka replied.

            "This must be what Okayama was like when the dinosaurs were around," Tenchi said.

            "What dinosaurs?" Sasami asked.

            As if on cue, the ground began to vibrate, then stopped. A bigger vibration then happened, and another.

            "Oh, we're in big trouble," Tenchi said to himself, his annoying attribute of irony still with him. "Trust me, you don't want to be around when that thing gets here. Go. Go now!"

            Tenchi began running through the trees, closely followed by the others.

            "Tenchi, I think you should know something," Washu called as she ran. "I've detected a destabilising field around this entire area. We can't use any of our powers."

            "That explains why Ryoko's running," Tenchi called back, looking at the space pirate. Ryoko was running as fast as she could, gasping for breath, as was everyone else.

            They suddenly came to a clearing, a large expanse of flat grassy land.

            "That's good," Mihoshi said. "At least there are no more roots to trip over."

            "No, Mihoshi, this is completely the opposite," Tenchi said slowly, the fear apparent in his voice. "The open land is where the big dinosaurs live. It's only the smaller ones that can find their ways through the trees."

            They started to walk slowly though the tall grass, growing as it was to about knee-height. They spread out, as is customary for a group to do upon discovering an open area.

            A large crashing sound came from behind them. A large dark green reptilian head appeared out of the trees and roared. It was a Tyrannosaurus Rex. It burst out of the trees and straight towards them.

            Mihoshi and Ayeka started to scream, but Tenchi quickly clamped his hands over their mouths. Aki had done the same with Sasami.

            "Everyone, shut up!" Tenchi ordered. "Don't move! It can't see us if we don't move."

            The Rex leaned down and began to sniff the area the people were in. Its face came dangerously close to Tenchi and the girls he was keeping quiet. Tenchi just clamped them harder, struggling to keep them still.

            The Rex leaned back up and moved forward. It proceeded to pace around where they were. The group moved slowly together.

            "What do we do?" Washu whispered. "We can't find the wizard if we can't move."

            "Right," Aki agreed. "Why don't we just kill it?"

            "Three very important reasons," Tenchi replied. "One, we can't use our powers. Two, it could change the future in ways we can't imagine. And three, we can't use our powers. Now, I realise that I repeated myself, but I thought it was such an important point, it was worth mentioning twice."

            "Good point," Aki whispered. "Well made."

            "But what can we do?" Sasami asked.

            "I'm going to have to distract it," Tenchi said.

            "You? Why not me?" Aki asked.

            "Because my future selves said I've already done this. Washu, where's the centre of this distortion field?"

            "Some hundreds of metres over there," Washu pointed, roughly back towards where they came from.

            "Right," Tenchi said. "If I distract the Rex and get it to go over there..." He pointed towards the large clear expanse. "...You should be able to get to the wizard. It's most likely he'll be back there, at the centre of this field."

            "Tenchi, wait!" Ayeka said. "You could die."

            "Possibly," Tenchi replied. "I could have died many times before, but I managed."

            "But that was when you had your powers," Ryoko said. "Now you don't. Let me go instead."

            "Yes, let her go instead," Ayeka agreed. "Ryoko, you know I didn't mean it like that," she added as Ryoko looked at her.

            "You wouldn't do much better against this thing," Tenchi said. "Look, I'm going. I'll be fine, because my future selves exist. Just go to the wizard and get him to give me my God powers back, or at least remove this distortion field."

            Tenchi stood up, and ran away from the group. "Hey, Rex!" he yelled. "Over here! Come and get me!"

            The Rex spotted him, roared and turned to give chase.

            "You, go now!" Tenchi shouted at the others. "Just go!"

            Tenchi turned away from them and ran like death was after him, which it actually was. This death had big teeth.

            "Let's go," Aki said, standing up. He hoisted Sasami onto his back and started moving towards the trees. "Everyone, come with me."

            But they didn't.

            "That Rex is so much faster than him," Ryoko noted. "It's going to kill him." She stood up, only to be pulled towards the trees by Washu. "Hey, what's the idea? I need to help Tenchi!"

            "And just what good are you going to be?" Washu asked. "Tenchi's the only one we know will survive. We don't know about us. We should go now, and try to help Tenchi by removing this destabilising field. Don't make me do anything you'll regret."

            Grudgingly, Ryoko and the others went, searching for the centre of the field and Rytel, the wizard of Auze.

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            After stumbling through the trees for a couple of minutes, they came to the wizard. Rytel was sitting on the ground in front of a tree. He appeared to be relaxing.

            Ryoko grabbed him and thrust him back against the tree.

            "You," she demanded. "Give Tenchi his God powers back now."

            "Why should I?" Rytel asked, his voice calm and steady.

            "So that he can create the Universe, and so you," Washu said evenly.

            "A good reason, but not good enough," Rytel replied. "You're going to have to kill me."

            "Your choice," Ryoko said, as she grasped the wizard's head with both hands.

            "Ryoko, no!" Sasami shouted. "Don't kill him!"

            "She's right," Ayeka said. "You, disperse this energy suppressing field at once."

            "Already done," Rytel said. "I knew this was going to happen, and I'm not trying to escape my destiny. Just kill me."

            Aki's mouth opened slightly, and his eyes flickered momentarily. Then he frowned.

            "But why were you trying to kill Tenchi in the first place?" Mihoshi asked. "He didn't blow up your planet."

            "He did!" Rytel said violently. "He single-handedly destroyed every single life form on my planet. And this is my revenge," he said calmly. "Right now, your beloved Tenchi is in the stomach of a dinosaur in no less than three pieces. Kill me all you want; I'll at least die knowing some kind of justice was done."

            Most of the group went pale.

            "But once he dies, the magic stopping his God evolution will fade, right?" Washu asked.

            "Wrong," the wizard smiled. "The magic affects his mind, restricts it. As long his mind continues on, he'll never become God again."

            Ryoko summoned her energy sword and held it to Rytel's neck.

            "Any last requests?" she asked slowly and quietly.

            "Can you get off me?" the wizard asked, smiling slightly.

            "I'm afraid not," Ryoko said, narrowing her eyes.

            Space around the two began to warp, twisting around them and enveloping them. The wizard was trying to jump through time again. They vanished almost completely, leaving only vague impressions in the air, and then they suddenly reappeared. Ryoko dropped the wizard to the floor. Rytel was dead.

            Aki quickly grabbed Sasami and turned her around, not letting her see too much of the body. He held her while she began to cry.

            "Tenchi," she sniffed quietly.

            Aki looked up at the others. As soon as he had heard that the field was down, he had tried sensing Tenchi, but he couldn't. He was either dead or somewhere far away. And he knew Tenchi wouldn't have found out he could use his powers again the instant he could. He bowed his head and closed his eyes in remembrance.

            "Washu, take us home," Aki said quietly.

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In the next episode of Supplement DB:

            The rest of the group return home, thanks to Washu. Once back, they find they have no time for grieving over Tenchi, as something vitally important is happening in the front garden back home. It's the meeting of the Gods, and the destruction of everything around, in "Back to the Past". And this isn't spoiling anything, as you've been told this already, but Tenchi hasn't actually been eaten alive. He's fine. Just so you know.


	8. Back to the Past

Previously on Supplement DB:

            The adventures of time and space took Tenchi and the others to another planet, back to meet Tenchi's mother, and back again to meet a dinosaur. Tenchi distracted the Rex, leaving the others free to dispose of the wizard. Not being able to sense Tenchi anywhere, Aki decided that they should go back home. Poor Tenchi, eaten alive by a ten-ton T-Rex. That can't be the bright spot in anyone's day.

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            Supplement DB, Part VIII – Back to the Past

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            Back in the present, in front of the Masaki house, several things were going on. One was the door that had appeared from nowhere. It slid open and six people stepped out. The door slid shut again and promptly disappeared.

            Washu, Sasami, Ayeka, Aki, Mihoshi and Ryoko just stood and stared at what was in front of them. There were four Tenchi's.

            One Tenchi turned around and smiled. He walked up to them.

            "Hey, guys," Tenchi greeted. "I'm back."

            "How?" Aki asked.

            "Neo was kind enough to offer me a lift, so I took it," Tenchi replied.

            "What about the dinosaur?" Ayeka asked, tears welling up in her eyes at the sight of her love once again. She, along with Ryoko and the others, had rushed to Tenchi and were hugging him.

            "It almost got me, but then I got my powers back. I took off and met Neo a few seconds later. He brought me back. Thanks for ending that distortion field, by the way."

            "But what's going on?" Mihoshi asked.

            The question was indeed valid, as the other three Tenchi's, all in their God forms, were standing in a small triangle, each with one hand raised up in the middle, palm vertical. A light blue glowing could be seen between their hands.

            The surrounding environment was also different. It was fluctuating between what should normally be there and a field. It seemed to be normal twice as long as it was the other. But upon closer inspection, the normal scenery was altering. Heights of trees were different, and different plants appeared and went.

            "Space is fractured here," Tenchi explained. "Neo, Futen and Mirai are all trying to stabilise it, and they're all in different times. That's why the space around them is changing. Neo told me all this. It appeared just after I came back."

            "But why is there a temporal rift?" Washu asked.

            "It's because of us," Tenchi replied. "Us and the wizard combined, our slicing through time disrupted it, causing a rupture there. It's because, when we were slicing, the person who started it wasn't around at the other end to seal the slice. They just sent us off, didn't they? They're trying to fix it, but I don't think it'll work."

            "Why not?" Ryoko asked.

            "Because they're a part of it," Tenchi replied. "They helped to cause the rift, so they won't be able to completely seal it."

            The glow intensified, and the three Gods put forward their other hands, the frown of extreme concentration on each of their faces.

            "It's going to give," Neo called to the group. "Get ready to jump!"

            Jumping was another term Tenchi had recently acquired. It was what he called his instant translocation. Instantly translocating didn't roll off the tongue like jumping, so Tenchi used this term instead.

            "Neo, remember what I said before?" Tenchi called back, stepping towards the struggling deity. "About erasing time? Why don't you all try that?"

            "We're too busy," Futen called back. "You have no idea how hard it is to contain this thing."

            "It's tearing!" Mirai shouted. Indeed it was. The glow was getting brighter.

            Tenchi raised his fingers to his forehead, trying to ignore what he was about to do, at least for the moment. He watched as the glow encompassed the three Gods and advance quickly up to them. The others screamed and leapt for Tenchi. Tenchi concentrated and closed his eyes. He jumped.

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            Memories flooded past Tenchi, places, people, objects. The DragonBalls. Ayeka. Home. Ryoko. Saiyan. Sasami. An energy blast. All these things merged together.

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            The tiny white dot of light fused into electricity and zapped Tenchi's hands. Tenchi yelped and hugged them to his body.

            "Tenchi, are you okay?" Sasami asked, sitting in front of him, leaning forward.

            Tenchi blinked a few times, and looked around. He was home, just a short distance from where he had jumped. He looked at Sasami, who was looking at him worriedly.

            "I'm, I'm fine, Sasami," Tenchi said. He rubbed his hands on his chest and showed them to the princess. They were now fine, as Tenchi had healed them. "I'm sorry, I must have lost concentration back there."

            Aki finished his meditating and stood up. He called to Tenchi.

            "Hey, Ten, what're you doing over there?" he asked.

            Something was not right. This appeared to be a week ago, but it couldn't be. It was before those little demons came. In fact, just before they came.

            "Um, let's go over here," Tenchi said slowly, pointing after an attempt at a tree, the tree they had stood below before, a week ago.

            They walked over to the tree.

            "So Tenchi, what are you showing Sasami?" Aki asked.

            "Um, the Spirit Focus," Tenchi replied half-heartedly.

            "I didn't know you called it that as well," Aki said. "Out here on this remote planet. I would have thought you'd come up with your own term for it."

            "I do. It's Zero-Point Energy," Tenchi replied, looking round.

            "Tenchi, what's with you today?" Aki asked, the concern showing in his voice.

            "Oh, um, nothing. Just some déjà vu."

            Tenchi was about to say something else, but stopped as he heard a voice.

            'Tenchi, do not be alarmed,' the voice echoed. Tenchi looked round, trying to find the source. A faint shimmering image of Neo was standing to his right. Tenchi moved his hand to touch him, but his hand just waved through him.

            "What're you doing?" Aki asked. Tenchi just ignored him, listening to the figure.

            'Only you can hear me,' the voice continued. 'Don't say anything. Just listen. We three erased the timeline back until when you are now. We've destroyed the wizard too, and the demons, in your time. Only you can remember anything.'

            The image faded as a part of Tenchi's memories. Tenchi shook his head and looked at Aki.

"What?" Tenchi asked. "Oh, nothing. I just thought something was there, but there isn't."

            "Look, why don't you just lie down?" Aki suggested. "I think that heat yesterday has finally fried your brain."

            "Maybe," Tenchi nodded slowly. He walked back over to Sasami and lay down near her on his side, watching her meditate.

            "I'm back," Tenchi whispered.

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            Later that day, the one-star Wind DragonBall appeared. Tenchi jumped to the mountain where he had found it before, and picked it up. But instead of jumping back home, he waited for a few moments until the next Ball appeared. This time he was ready for it. He jumped, and reappeared inches above liquid magma. He quickly formed a cooling bubble around himself, and drifted over to where the DragonBall was perched, on a small ledge on one side of the volcanic crater. He spotted it almost instantly, as he knew exactly where to look. He managed to touch it with three seconds to spare. He picked it up and jumped home.

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            "Check these out, everyone," Tenchi said, barely containing his pride. Now having retrieved the DragonBall he had missed the first time around, he was as happy as anything. Now all he needed was the five-star Light Ball.

            "Oh wow!" Sasami said. "You've got two more Balls!"

            "That's right," Tenchi replied. He held up the one-star Ball. "This one is the Wind DragonBall, and this one..." Tenchi looked around the newest Ball, looking for the image. He found it. "This one would be the Psyche DragonBall. There are two pointy ovals around the stars in this one, so they must be eyes, the eyes of Psyche."

            Tenchi added them to the very fine collection. They were probably the most valuable things ever, able to grant wishes, but Tenchi wasn't going to sell them. He needed the Balls to make his wish and restore his God abilities. For once the magical dragon Shenron had been summoned, and Tenchi once again had his God form, he would finally get around to the important things. Creating everything, for one. Forming life was another, and a separate event, as the three goddesses, the Trinity of Washu, Tokemi and Tsunami, would have to be created. And of course, Tenchi would finally get to finish his documentary about the lives and deaths of Tenchi Masaki.

==============================

Now at the end of Supplement DB:

            And that's the end of the saga. Everyone forgets everything, except for Tenchi, and it's just another normal day. Some may wonder what is to be next, so I'll tell you. In the next saga, "Apex AZ (Absolute Zenith)", something is discovered on a remote planet on the outskirts of the galaxy. Something that makes Tenchi so utterly terrified that in this next saga, strong language is actually used. There is a very good reason why Tenchi is so scared, and that's because this new danger threatens to destroy the galaxy. It's not a mad scientist, and it's not a Slider, nor a wizard. It's the Borg.


	9. The next saga

From magical to technological...  
  
This story continues with "Apex AZ", also in the same section as this one. 


End file.
